Splatoon: Hero of the Inkhänder
by Jerry65
Summary: It's been 100 years since Octavio last ravaged the Earth, defeated by the legendary Craig Cuttlefish. Since then, peace remained on the land, with the threat of the Octarians now gone. At least, until Octavio returns, with one goal in mind: destroy all Inklings. With the Cuttlefish family nowhere to be found and the enemy closing in, one Inkling must be prepared to face the worst.
1. Chapter 1

**Knight's Code, And How to Break It**

**Here's the start of a new story I'm writing based on Splatoon but with a bit of a twist. This story is basically what I came up with after seeing the Knights vs Wizards Splatfest and all the amazing art that came out of that thing. So I thought "hey, this would be a cool idea" and so I began writing. Took me several weeks to write just this one chapter, but hopefully it's good. Of course, I don't think every chapter will be this long, but they definitely won't be short either. Anyways, enjoy my new story!**

**Note: I changed a few plot elements to better fit some ideas I have. These plot points aren't too big and the changes aren't too drastic, but they are noticeable if you've read the story beforehand.**

**Note #2: I came to the conclusion that 'Calamari Country" sounds like a pretty stupid name, so I changed it to Mollusca. You're welcome, I guess**

**Disclaimer for the whole story: I don't own Splatoon, only the story and any OCs in it that I happened to make.**

* * *

It was a stormy night, the wind howling. The rain poured down like hail stones, and circular ripples covered the flooded ground as the rushing water pelted onto the mud. The hard rainfall made billions of splashing and "thud" noises, and the dirt road was now a flooded, mucky mud slide. The trees tilted slightly from the high winds, and the rain fell diagonally across the landscape. The night was only illuminated, very barely, by the moon, and the night sky was a mix of pure black darkness and the small highlights of navy and dark blue light that surrounded the moon. Thunder bellowed in the distance and lightning lit the sky in the few seconds it struck. One figure, one man, trudged through the mud slide, his hand covering his face as he soldiered on against nature's powerful forces. The rain pelted his sleeve like bullets, and his boots were starting to stain brown on the bottoms. The pitch black darkness of the night helped cover his face, which was also covered by a hood. He was tall, muscular and a well built man. He wore a large, thick cape made of some leather that concealed most of his body. He seemed to have some things attached to his back, but what they were were unidentifiable in the darkness. Finally, one of his heavy steps found a hard surface, still covered in a thin film of water. The hard and heavy step made a small splash, and he stood on a cobblestone path. The man looked up, his light brown eyes reflecting the moonlight and staring at the staring at the wooden bridge towards him, one that ended at a stone gate guarded by raised iron bars. The wooden bridge overlooked a large moat that appeared to be overflowed with rain water, with broken leaves, branches and some murky looking water flowing violently through it. The man took several steps back, before breaking into a desperate run. The wooden gate began to crank upwards, and as it became more vertical, the water started to flow downwards, cascading down the bridge. The man rested his arm against the wood surface and slid down the door, using the water to get past friction a bit before leaping off, landing onto a cobblestone path and rolling several feet before large wooden doors slowly slammed shut. The man huffed a heavy sigh before getting up, brushing himself off and marching on. A large creature with tentacles on its head approached. It had four large legs that it stood on, and had glowing green eyes that shone in the rain. The man stood back a bit, reaching to his back, and the creature reared its hind legs before releasing a humongous roar that echoed across the path, and the hood and cape the man wore shook. The man drew a sword from his back, the rain dripping from the blade. The beast gnarled its teeth and made a low, threatening growl before charging at the man head on…

* * *

"So, the squid is here…" Octavio muttered to himself. His long maroon-red tentacles adorned his head in a messy but elaborate fashion, decorated with green "X" marked scars. The large gold-plated samurai helmet made him look fearsome, with the gold metal designed to look like the fearsome octopus that represents his species. The helmet was often one of the key features many people knew about him, and was often a trait that was always used first whenever people described him. His light green eyes contrasted to the dark purple shade of color under his eyes, making him appear angry and radiating a hateful atmosphere from his stares alone. He wore a long black cape that dragged along the ground, with the interior being crimson red and the exterior being pitch black. His clothes, unlike his helmet, weren't armored and he wore quite a fancy looking and regal suit and tuxedo, which were also black with parts of the suit being a nice dark shade of green. The clothes he wore had intricate and carefully created designs around these green parts which were on his collar and outer parts of the suit that folded out. His tuxedo was pure black and he had a dark red cloth belt tied around his waist. A long but very skinny sword was sheathed in a gold decorated sheath and was kept on this belt. This man, very tall and well built, especially for someone like him, sat on a dark throne. Above him was a carved statue carved from the wall, a statue of an angry octopus and its tentacles curled in a menacing way. The windows of the throne room were covered in water from the heavy rainfall, and you could see the lightning strikes due to the high location of the throne room in his castle. Octavio drank a small glass of Octarian wine with a hint of wasabi, a classic mix that he enjoyed on nights like this. However, this night was different, as a mortal enemy was quickly cruising through his castle, probably slaughtering all the minions that stood in his way. Finally, he could hear the footsteps of his foe rush in, and soon Octavio was face to face with his enemy.

"So, you are this Cuttlefish I've been hearing about, a descendant to the ones who battled me originally all those years ago, sending me down to my grave where I always laid until my rightful return. I'm assuming you've come here to fulfill your duty that the King has given to you, am I correct?" Octavio asked the man who walked in. The man wore a leather cape and coat, covered in small blotches of magenta Octarian ink.

"Octavio, for the sake of the people of the Mollusca and its people, I must put an end to your reign of darkness and the suffering you have cause for everyone. Release the Great Zapfish, and surrender, it's all over." the man said. He sounded young, but not too young, perhaps a younger adult. The man, Cuttlefish, looked above Octavio's throne to see the Great Zapfish wrapped around a large stone tentacle protruding from the ceiling.

"Suffering? I am revered as a king, the lord, the savior who will save the Octarians from their oppression. Why do you think I keep coming back every time one of you pathetic, annoying and bothersome squids come and kill me? There's my followers, my people, who want me to rule. It only shows my destiny, to eradicate your species from existence so no one else may suffer as I and many others have. It is far from over, little squid, and you know it."

"Your followers are those whom you have controlled over the years, manipulated so they do your bidding. You aren't a savior, you're a tyrant, a monster. Genocide of my species won't change things in the past, it will only make things worse in the future!" The man threw off his cape and hood to reveal himself. He was a young man, with beautiful light brown eyes. He had his tentacles tied into a ponytail, and sported a much smaller beard than Octavio. He wore a dark tan colored chestplate and underneath it some tan clothing. He had silver armor for his left forearm and a leather sleeve to protect his right arm. He wore black fingerless gloves, and his dark swampy-green pants had some knee armor, finally with some nice thick leather boots.

"Perhaps you perceive me as a monster. But I will not allow you to kill me once again Cuttlefish. Today, at the start of this century, I will begin my long awaited reign for power. Today, I take everything you Inklings hold dearly to yourselves just as you have taken everything from us! I will use your own creations and needs against you, to destroy you. But enough of my babble, face me like a warrior!" Octavio took one hard chug of the wine before tossing aside the glass, which shattered on the red carpet that decorated the otherwise bland stone floor of the throne room. He stood up, and Cuttlefish got into a fighting stance. Octavio drew his long sword, almost as tall as him, however, he did not start swinging. Instead, a large pillar of pink ink appeared over and crashed over him, before it rose and took him away from the spot. Cuttlefish was shocked, and suddenly heard a loud noise as the ink pillar appeared behind him, and the pink ink crashed as Octavio appeared and swung his sword several times, nearly catching Cuttlefish with fatal blows. Cuttlefish ducked and blocked, nearly escaping death.

"Did you think it was going to be easy? How hard do you think it was for your ancestors to fight me all those years ago?" Octavio taunted, swinging his long cape aside and opening it, revealing three stalks of wasabi aimed at Cuttlefish. The spicy stalks launched themselves at the squid, who dodge rolled out of the way. Behind him, he saw a fiery explosion erupt. Octavio swung downwards, and Cuttlefish blocked with his sword horizontally above his head before moving aside and trying to land a strike on the tall Octarian. Octavio swung at Cuttlefish's feet, making him backflip to avoid the strike before swinging at his chest. The Octoling spun the long sword swiftly to his side, scratching the rug leaving a path way of cuts. Cuttlefish backed up slowly as his tall foe approached steadily, and soon without warning Octavio started attacking, swinging to Cuttlefish's neck, then attempting to stab his chest and abdomen before trying to strike the legs in several swift blows. Cuttlefish duck to avoid the head swing before spinning out of the way of the second and third attack. Cuttlefish managed to parry the last three strikes to his legs and countered, swinging upward diagonally with his sword. Cuttlefish managed to slice a gold metal tentacle from Octavio's helmet and also managed to nick him in the shoulder, but Octavio summoned three explosive balls of ink, forcing the squid to leap back to avoid the blast. Cuttlefish pulled out some projectiles of his own and threw a couple of bombs filled with ink, which exploded and covered the Octoling in green ink. Octavio hissed in pain, the bomb's ink burning into his skin and clothes. Octavio summoned yet another pillar of ink, and teleported behind Octavio to fire more wasabi stalks, and Cuttlefish was caught in the fiery blast, knocking him back onto a wall. His sword, the one his family has used to fight Octavio for years, was knocked out of his hands. Octavio kicked it away, the weapon sliding across the stone area of the throne room where no carpet was located.

"Finally, you screw up. Is this where the Inklings lose, is this when I finally start my empire and spread my own Octarian influence across this land?" Octavio asked, although Cuttlefish knew he wasn't expecting him to answer. Octavio swung down with his sword and Cuttlefish quickly used his left forearm armor to block the sword. Despite it being armor, the sharp blade dug into the metal and managed to cut his arm, and ink was bleeding from the cut, dripping down his arm and toward his elbow. Octavio kicked Cuttlefish in the stomach, and the Inkling grunted in pain, but he managed to pull out another bomb and throw it into Octavio's face. The Octoling shouted in pain and started throwing curses here and there, grasping his burning face. Cuttlefish used this opportunity to rush to his family weapon and grab it. His sword was now fully charged with green ink, shining brightly and illuminating the area around him in a bright green light that contrasted from the darkness of the rest of the throne room and the night outside. Octavio saw his enemy, fully armed and ready, and filled with anger and pure hatred boiled up over the years, Octavio charged at full speed. He didn't hesitate, swinging his sword and spinning around, dodging Cuttlefish's attacks while furiously striking back and retaliating. Octavio stabbed Cuttlefish in the shoulder and successfully got his shin, but Cuttlefish threw more bombs to distract the octopus while he laid in some good hits with his sword. The sword cut into Octavio, green bioluminescent ink pouring into his wounds. All he could see was hate, and all he could feel was searing, unbearable pain. But Octavio waited so long to come back, he couldn't stop now. Octavio leapt up into the air, before raining hundreds upon hundreds of flaming wasabi stalks down on the Inkling. Cuttlefish swung and spun his sword, deflecting them all and cutting a few so they didn't hit him. All over, flames erupted in the throne room, smoke billowing from the red and orange lights. Octavio crashed downwards and created an explosion of magenta ink, which hit Cuttlefish and knocked him over. He wiped some of the opposing ink off of himself before having to dodge several more balls of exploding ink and extendable metal fists that created colorful blotches and craters on the wall. Now, the whole room was lit by the flames from earlier, and Cuttlefish stood his ground valiantly as the Octoling advanced, teleporting over and over using pillars of ink as travel, throwing wasabi fireballs, metal fists, and explosive ink. Cuttlefish managed to slice at Octavio and damage him whenever he was attempting to teleport again, and soon into the fight he found out he could deflect the fists back at the octopus to knock him to the ground. Octavio, battered and beaten, could see he was starting to lose. That sword, it was too powerful for his current form.

"Little squid, we end this fight now and forever, allow me to show you true power, and show you who the lord of this castle is!" Octavio shouted ferociously, and summoned waves of magenta Octarian ink to crash on top of him, and the gallons of ink that he summoned absorbed into his skin, growing his size and changing his form. He summoned the Great Zapfish towards him, pulling it into the waves before consuming it. Now, Octavio was a large, hideous beast, a giant octopus with long, thick tentacles, a sharp beak that could cut through even the hardest rocks and metal, and the large boulder shaped eyes stared right into Cuttlefish's soul, with only one goal: kill.

"_What the shell…"_ Cuttlefish thought to himself. Octavio released a terrifying roar that echoed around the room before slamming his tentacles outward, smashing the ceiling and opening the throne room up, located high above the ground. Their battlefield was larger now, and Octavio threw all he could at the Inkling.

"You're right Octavio. This ends now. Die MONSTER!" Cuttlefish exclaimed bravely and charged, swinging his sword and creating waves of ink projectiles that slammed against Octavio's skin. The beast let out terrifying roars and screams as it rained all hell on its foe. Lightning crashed in the background and thunder roared in the sky, and the two enemies threw everything they had at one another. Octavio large wasabi bombs and fireballs, slamming his tentacles down at Cuttlefish in attempts to crush him. Cuttlefish dove out of the way while swinging his sword to create large, powerful ink waves that deflected the bombs back towards the octopus, who would scream as the fiery explosions erupted at his face. Cuttlefish threw more and more of his own bombs, creating small explosions of ink that burned onto the flesh of the octopus. Octavio tried to stab Cuttlefish with several powerful jabs of his massive gargantuan tentacles, and Cuttlefish slid and rolled away, slicing a few with his sword as he did so and watched the limbs drop lifelessly. Octavio released a large ink flood onto the broken throne room, flooding what was left and overflowing the place, the excess ink flowing off the edges and down onto the rest of the castle. The powerful currents created by this swept Cuttlefish from his feet, and Cuttlefish used his shield to ride the currents to his enemy, where he leapt off and proceeded to hack and slash at his enemy before having to leap back onto his shield, nearly avoiding Octavio's sharp beak. Finally, Cuttlefish threw three bombs into Octavio's right eye, blinding him before leaping up and shoving his sword right between the octopus' eyes. Octavio let out one beastly scream before exploding into a large ocean of ink that cascaded like a waterfall off the ruins of the throne room. Cuttlefish, brushing off the excess magenta ink off himself, walked over to the defeated Octoling, who returned back to his old form. The Octoling laid against a pile of stone rubble, with some small flames still dotting the room here or there. Octavio looked up at his enemy, his eye terribly bruised and nasty cuts, slashes and gashes marking his whole body.

"D-do what you came here to do, little squid...but remember, this isn't the end…"

"It never is, Octavio. Even I know that." Cuttlefish agreed, and stabbed him in the heart, darker colored ink flowing from Octavio's chest. Octavio went wide eyed before the life from his eyes faded into nothing, and he slumped backwards lifelessly. Cuttlefish pulled his sword out of his body, and picked up the dead Octavio and his hooded cape, putting it on and walking away. As he walked past the multitude of halls and rooms he fought past to get there, he could see the remaining Octolings shaking their heads, wondering what was happening. They were all now free of Octavio's control, and soon enough they put two and two together the instant they saw Cuttlefish and the dead lord of the castle. Cuttlefish left the castle entrance, where a young female Inkling waited for him patiently. She smiled, tears flowing from her eyes as she hugged the hero tightly. The two shared a small kiss before walking away from the site, admiring the beautiful sunrise that welcomed them. They watched the the sky as the Great Zapfish flew out of the ruins of the throne room and off to Inkopolis, where it resided. The Octolings abandoned the castle and soon, it started to crumble, lost of all the magic that its lord had given it. Strangely, nothing was left, not even a single piece of brick left behind. All that remained was a peaceful mountain plain as the sun rose slowly, the dew in the grass shimmering in the light. There was nothing left, and now an era of peace had begun once more...

* * *

**City of Inkopolis, 100 Years Later…**

"Haa! Ugh, aah!" An Inkling girl exclaimed. She swung a stick around in an intense duel with another Inkling, a boy. The two were outside in a flat, grassy area in the large castle gardens, training in combat with two sticks so they couldn't harm each other. Well, much.

"Ow! Hey, I thought we were just training and having some fun, not trying to actually attack each other!" The Inkling boy exclaimed, rubbing his elbow. He had blue tentacles tied into a ponytail, had bright blue eyes and light skin. He wore a small short sleeve black jacket with turquoise patterning over a silver chestplate that shone in the sunlight, with hardly any scratches and scrapes. On his arms was some silver metal armor to protect his forearms, and he wore a long pair of tan pants and a pair of leather boots. His name was Drew, or as his friends called him Blue for the blue tentacles he had.

"Don't be such a baby, the point is to get some strikes onto the opponent. Toughen up a little, will ya?" The girl told him. She had bright orange tentacles, with two long ones that reached to her knees on the sides of her head. Her tentacles had a dotted pattern of darker orange-ish-brown spots and the shade of orange got darker the closer it was to the tips, which reached a little below her knees. She wore a light brown shirt with a thick tan stripe going down the middle. She wore pants she cut to be shorter to be at her knees. The ends there were slightly frayed and worn from the knife she used. She also wore a pair small black shoes that looked fairly old and worn as well. Her name was Reika, or "Orange", a nickname given to her by Drew despite her numerous protests.

"I'm not being a baby…"

"You totally are, Blue."

"Reika, this isn't a fair fight, you've got a stronger and bigger stick than I do! Every time I block an attack of yours, my stick feels like it's going to snap in-" Just like he was going to say, Reika swung her stick at his chest, and Drew blocked the attack, only for his stick to snap in two, hardly stopping the blow as it hit him on his chest and knocked him over.

"Cod, are you okay?" Reika asked, kneeling beside Drew, concern written all over her face.

"Ow...I'm fine. Like I was going to say, my stick was going to break."

"Sorry. Maybe I should have taken the weaker stick." Reika said, chuckling nervously as she reached out her hand and helped Drew up off the grass. The two picked up their swords, encased inside leather sheaths, and started to walk back inside the castle. Drew held open the large wooden door, motioning his hand inside.

"Ladies first." Drew said with a smug smirk. Reika just elbowed him playfully and he laughed. Reika just sighed and shook her head, smiling at her friend.

"Blue, you don't have to do that when we've known each other for this long."

"I know, I know, I was kidding. So, how's the knight training going for you?" Drew asked as they walked into a fancy hall with several paintings decorating the walls while a lavish red carpet covered the floors.

"Eh, pretty good. Gotta say, it's really hard and tiring, but I'm proud to do it."

"Heh, yeah. Can't believe my father forced me to get some combat training when I'm sure I wouldn't even be in a fight. I've never even seen my father fight anyone before, so I don't see the big deal. Not like he's going out into a battlefield."

"Hey, you never know Blue. When you become king, something might happen where you'll have to fight in a war to protect your kingdom." Reika mentioned.

"True. But...I don't know. Being the prince stresses me out enough, but if I was king…" Drew shuddered at the thought. Reika already knew how stressed her friend could be, especially when he tries to follow closely in his father's footsteps.

"Hey, that's like several years from now. Besides, when I become a knight, I'll be right beside you and you know I would do my best to protect you." Reika told her friend, who smiled. It was a small, calm smile, one he gave whenever he was relaxed and felt at peace. Suddenly, a guard came running down the hall at top speed, his armor clanking as he ran.

"Sir! The King, he wants to see you now! Says it's urgent!"

"Of course it is...I'll see you later at the ceremony Orange." Drew told her, and he quickly followed the guard away down the hall, while Reika turned around and walked the other direction, feeling slightly lonely as she did so.

* * *

**Later…**

The soon-to-be-official knights stood in an orderly line, where the Captain of the Royal Guard stood, his hands resting on the hilt of his sword. In front of them was the King himself, standing on the makeshift wooden stage and speaking to the crowd below.

"Greetings, citizens of Inkopolis! As your king, I am proud to be present in this wonderful time of the year. A time of great weather and another year of peace, and even better, some younglings get to join the higher ranks, protecting us all and serving this kingdom well." The King announced, and the crowd cheered, pumping their fists into the air or clapping. Loud cheers of excitement echoed around the stadium, and it made the soon-to-be knights smile and wave. Today was a happy day for everyone.

"I will repeat the Knight's Code, a pledge of loyalty and allegiance sworn by countless others before you. Repeat after me, newcomers, and keep these wise words close to you as you keep your weapon close to you in battle." The young Inklings listened, and nodded in understanding as they heard each point be made with the highest amount of emphasis.

"Honor your King and those who are above you with utmost respect."

"Understand your duty to protect and serve this kingdom, and do not run from your duty."

"The promises that you have made as part of your covenant with this kingdom are to be kept.

Betrayal to this kingdom and your ruler is the biggest crime you could ever commit."

"These are the three main points the Knight's Code emphasizes. Remember these three points everyday, and remember that all of us, even me, count on your work every day, every month, every year. Now that I recited the Code, I am honored to knight each and every Inkling here, and I'm honored to be protected by such skilled individuals. Step forward, my soldiers, and receive your blessing." The King ordered in his calm and deep voice, and everyone stepped forward. One by one, the King knighted them with his very own sword, a fancy sword that reflected the sunlight, the hilt encased in gold and the handle of it wrapped in leathery cloth. The Inklings kneeled before their ruler, and eagerly received the blessing before being handed their armor and weapon. The King was knighting them from right to left, and Reika was at the back of the line all the way over. On the stage was Drew, who waved to her. Reika smiled, and turned around just as the king arrived to her. She kneeled down and felt the King's sword lightly tap her shoulders and head, before being told to stand up. The King gave her a warm smile before a guard beside him handed her the armor and sword she would be wearing and carrying with her.

"Citizens, these are the knights that will protect you, and I put every part of my trust and respect to these Inklings who have worked this hard to protect this kingdom and make it better everyday. Cheers, for our knights!" The crowd began to applause once more, some showering flowers onto the stage, while trumpets sounded in the background, blaring loudly. At the corner of her eye, Reika could see Drew applauding softly and quietly, before slipping away with several guards following close behind.

* * *

"_Reika...Reika...Reika…"_ Reika could hear her name being repeated softly, the voice so soft that if one made even the slightest noise, the sound could lose the soft whisper. She found herself surrounded in darkness and thick ominous fog that clouded the area around her. Reika swatted the fog away, which appeared as if it was trying to escape her hands and arms as she swung them around and blew it away. Soon, the fog separated and formed a distinct path, one where the pitch black ground suddenly formed a dirt road. The dirt road was blank, with a few stones and pebbles here or there, and maybe small grass growing just barely in a few places. Reika walked down the path, guarded at the sides by fog so thick and dense that she couldn't possibly see anything past it. As she walked down the path, Reika heard the voice once more.

"_Reika...Reika…"_

"Who are you? How do you know my name?" The girl asked, with no clear response given to her.

"_The path...it guides you to the future...don't go back...don't look back…"_

"What? What do you mean this path leads me to my future? And what's behind me…" Reika turned around to see a hideous figure in the shadows. It trudged forward slowly, dragging it's right foot behind the left. As it got closer, Reika could see the figure's identity.

"D-Drew? Wh-what's going on?" Reika asked, but no answer. What she saw next absolutely horrified her. Drew's lips had been torn off, revealing his beak, sewn together by metal wire that cut through it. The sides of his cheeks seemed to be ripped open to make his mouth appear bigger, and dark blue, nearly black ink seeped from the holes in his teeth made by the wires. One of his ears seemed to have a nasty, infected bite mark on it, and a piece of his head was missing, revealing his brain. His clothes were torn and weary, and his arms swung limply at his side. His right leg looked battered and broken, and Drew had bloodshot eyes that stretched wide. His eyelids were gone, and his nose had a large hole in it that also bled ink.

"B-Blue? Blue, you're scaring me...please, what's going o-" Reika was interrupted as Drew suddenly lurched forward and broke into a full on sprint, reaching his arms out and screaming a horrific cry. He forced his mouth open and the wire cut through hit beak, leaving nasty gashes and gaps in his teeth where the wire was. His broken jagged beak looked menacing, and by instinct Reika began to ran.

"Oh my cod, oh my cod!" Reika repeated as she did her best to run away from the zombified looking Drew, close behind her. She looked back to see he was right behind her, and Drew swiped one arm, clawing at her cheek and cutting it. Reika held her wounded cheek, and could feel ink bleed from it as she strafed out of the way of another attack. Reika turned around quickly and landed her foot on Drew's stomach before pushing him to the ground where he rolled in the dirt like a tumbleweed. Not bothering to watch him attempt to stand, Reika ran down the path, and kept running, listening to the voice from earlier telling her not to look back. Suddenly, the fog stopped her in her tracks. The path ended, blocked by the fog, and by now Drew had gotten up and was once again charging at her.

Just when she felt there was no way out of this situation, Reika heard a faint sound from above. She looked up to see a sword falling directly in front of her, landing on the ground perfectly vertical, embedding itself in the dirt. Reika pulled the simple metal sword out and held it in her hands, taking a stance as Drew arrived. Drew skidded to a halt, observing his opponent before screeching horrifically and charging at her, arms flailing around wildly. His screams seemed to echo in the fog of nothingness, and Reika closed her eyes and took a deep breath before starting to swing. She sliced once, twice, three times, before stopping. Drew stopped right in front of her, looking like he was okay and all in one piece. Then his left arm fell to the ground, followed by both sides of his body above his waist before his legs fell to their knees and fell forward, a small fountain of ink flowing out and making a small puddle at Reika's feet. Her sword was stained in Drew's ink, and she dropped it, the sword making a few "clang" sounds before stopping.

Suddenly, she could hear screeches and animalistic roars. In the distant, a swarm of monsters from the air swooped down to attack her, their vicious mouths opened wide. These creatures were like nothing she's ever seen before, and they dove with diligent speed, long tentacle arms with suction cups lined with spikes outstretched towards her.

"What the-AAAAHHHHHH!" Reika screamed, raising her sword quickly and swinging it aimlessly at several of the monsters. She beheaded the first, which simply crashed beside her, and bisected two more before stabbing another upside the head. She managed to cut down a few more beasts before being overwhelmed, and suddenly the multitude of crazed rabid animals turned to vapor, and she cried out to the darkness before being fully consumed by the fog.

She felt as if she were falling down an endless pit, a pit of loneliness and nothing that lead nowhere. She was falling from the sky, and felt lightheaded and limp. Her body twisted and turned in the air slowly, the dark pitch blackness returning. No fog, no crazy zombified Drew to haunt her. Reika thought the falling would never end...until she woke up and found herself in a grassy field. The field was all shades of bright green, and colorful flowers dotted the landscape like a rainbow, contrasting from the green of the countless blades of grass. The grass felt soft in her hands, and Reika stood up, seeing a dirt path ahead a few feet away.

"Oh cod, not another path. What's going to be at the end? More monsters and undead Blues? No way I'm going down there…"

"_Follow it. At the end is where you must go, where you must end up after a long journey ahead, for the destination is the end of all ends if you refuse to go." _Another, different voice told her. This one was more deep and gruff.

"Who are you!? GET ME OUT OF HERE!" Reika shouted to the voice, but no one answered. She sighed, and walked down the dirt path once more. As she made her way down, the sky began to grow darker, and the clouds looked more and more ominous and menacing every footstep. Finally, thunder roared, lightning struck in the distance, and rain poured down heavily. The dirt path started to turn to mud, and she could feel herself struggling to trudge through the messy terrain. She covered her eyes with her arm from the rain, and surprisingly the water didn't feel bad against her skin. Just then, a flash of lightning struck, and the bright light blinded her temporarily for a few seconds. Reika got her vision back, only to find an extremely tall man in front of her, wearing a regal outfit and a fancy extravagant cape. He had a long, skinny sword sheathed on his waist, and the night covered his features.

"Who are you?" Reika demanded, her arm still covering her face. Surprisingly to her, the man replied.

"Hello, Cuttlefish."

"W-What? U-um...I think you've got the wrong person, my names Reika..." She answered. The lightning strikes that happened occasionally gave enough light for herself to see his face and body. He looked much older than she was, but he seemed somewhat handsome and formal. Something about him though, she didn't like. Reika didn't know what it was, but she just had a feeling that there was something about him that were far less than good. Something ominous and unsettling about his presence disturbed her.

"Hm. I can feel something radiating off you...a certain power that's so familiar…I can feel it resisting with the aura around us, the atmosphere that's around me..."

"Wh-what? What are you talking about?" Reika asked, absolutely confused.

"You don't feel it yet? The dark power, the pitch blackness of the aura that's in the air we breathe? I can sense it coming, and I know you can sense it too. I am soon going to return, and when I do, I will become lord of my dark forces once again, and I shall rain chaos and hell upon your kind. Fear me Cuttlefish-" Before Reika could react, the man sped up to her in supernatural speed, and she felt a sharp pain in her chest. Reika looked down to see his hand embedded into her chest, which was bleeding heavily, the ink pouring down with the water from the rain. Reika could feel ink from the deep reaches of her body well up in her mouth before pouring out like a waterfall. She could feel his fingers wrapping around her heart.

"For hell will arrive once more, and I will burn your species and everything associated with it to the ground!"

"Wai-" Reika begged, but the man closed his fist quickly and scrunched her heart, killing her as she fell limp to the ground…

* * *

"NOOOOO! GET AWAY FROM ME!" Reika screamed at the top of her lungs. She did everything she could think of, kicking and flailing her limbs around, even switching rapidly from squid form to humanoid form. She could feel warm arms wrap around her, trying to calm her down and stop her from fighting back.

"REIKA!" Someone shouted, and she stopped. She looked up, and her vision cleared to see Drew right beside her bed, holding her in his arms tightly. She could easily tell he was worried by his facial expressions, but Drew also had called out her real name, which he never did unless he was being serious.

"B-Blue? What happened?"

"I was about to ask you the same thing. I came over to your barracks with some cake, and your fellow knights here told me you were going all crazy and rolling around in your bed while making whining noises. I tried to wake you up and then you went full on 'kill mode'." Drew explained. Reika stayed close to him, feeling somewhat safer in his arms. There was a moment of silence before Drew began to speak.

"Bad dream?"

"Y-yeah. Terrifying and strange."

"Terrifyingly strange?" He asked.

"I don't know, closer to 'strangely terrifying'. I never felt fear like that, and come to think of it, I don't know why I got so scared...I'm so confused and-"

"Hey, it's okay. You're safe now." Drew whispered softly.

"Th-thanks Blue." Reika told him, and they both just stayed there, silently and feeling awkward in the moment. "You can stop hugging me now." Reika told him, and Drew backed away, scratching the back of his head. He was blushing slightly, and watching him look a tad embarrassed put a smile on Reika's face.

"Sorry, heh, just wanted to make sure you're okay." Drew said, smiling nervously.

"Yeah, I'm fine" Reika yawned and stretched before hopping off her bed and walking out of the barracks, Drew following close behind. "So, what you been up to lately?"

"Well, not much. Oh yeah, my father said something to me that's really important, and that I really shouldn't tell anyone, even you." Drew replied. The last part definitely sparked Reika's curiosity, who wanted to hear more.

"So...if you aren't supposed to tell me, then why did you mention him telling you not to tell me?" Reika asked, and Drew just shrugged.

"I don't know, you would have asked what it was anyways, and besides, I would have told you regardless, because what I'm about to tell you, you can't tell anyone else, got it?"

"Yep, this mouth will be shut and stay shut!" Reika said confidently. Drew smiled, liking her enthusiastic attitude.

"Okay, so basically my father said the Octarians are talking to him about the Zapfish and how they need it. However, my father is hesitant because of the rough history we have with them."

"Makes sense. But why do they want the Zapfish?"

"They need it to rebuild apparently. They've been talking to him about peace relations, and it's been hard because the Octarians want some of their land back and all that."

"Huh. So...what is he going to do?"

"He doesn't know yet. Honestly, my mother said it's been stressing him out for the past few months now."

"Months!? Wow, that's just...wow." Reika exclaimed, shocked to find out how long this occurred.

"Yeah. You promise not to tell anyone, right?"

"Of course. Besides, who am I going to tell anyways when you're the only person I talk to?"

"Good point. I'll see you later Orange." Drew said, waving to her goodbye while he walked away with several guards, all armed and ready to defend him. Reika just stood there in front of the barracks, watching him disappear.

"What are you standin' there for soldier? It's time for trainin'!" The Captain of her barracks said, smacking her back and startling her. She let out a small surprised "eep" from her mouth, making the Captain displeased.

"Reika, only little dainty defenseless girls say 'eep' when they're startled. You cannot show fear to the enemy, or they'll use it against you and overpower you! You want that to happen?"

"No sir…"

"Good. NOW GO TRAIN!"

"Yes sir." Reika mumbled and sulked off to the training grounds, where she practiced her sword skills on dummies with multiple other knights. The Captain was behind them, shouting comments and orders.

"Come on men, IS THAT ALL YOU GOT!? CAUSE I'VE SEEN A FEEBLE OCTOTROOPER STRIKE HARDER THAN YOUR SAUSAGES OF ARMS COULD! STEP IT UP!" The Captain shouted at the top of his lungs.

"FASTER MAGGOTS, FASTER! WHEN THE ENEMY IS FASTER THAN YOU, YOU STRIKE FASTER UNTIL YOU'RE THE FASTEST, YOU UNDERSTAND!?"

"YES SIR!" They all shouted in union. The sounds of wooden training swords being whacked against dummies full of straw and old clothing or dummies of wood filled the air, and the soldiers trained hard in the heat of summer. Reika was slashing at her dummy, trying some new tricks she made up while fighting Drew in the castle. The Captain took note of this and watched, before walking over to her.

"What the shell do you think you're DOIN'!?"

"Uh, fighting?"

"What kind of technique is that!?"

"It's something the Prince and I made up while fighting in the castle…" Reika mumbled, and the Captain took both of his index fingers and made a high pitched whistle that got the attention of everyone. All the knights stopped their endless cycles of striking their targets and turned to look at Reika and the Captain.

"Reika, show these men what you've been doing!" The Captain ordered. Reika was nervous, not really liking the attention that was being given to her right now.

"Are you su-"

"SHOW THEM!" The Captain affirmed quite loudly, and Reika proceeded. She sliced and struck her dummy with several swift blows, aiming at multiple areas of its body. Unlike the other soldiers who just mindlessly swung and hit the targets in the same boring moves, Reika always changed her strategies, and when she trained on the dummy, she always imagined that the dummy was Drew, and that he was fighting her like at the castle. Once she felt she was finished, Reika stopped and let out a long sigh of relief.

"That...was embarrassing." The Captain said. Reika wasn't surprised, considering she was sort of doing her own thing rather than the boring repetitive attacks he told her to do.

"Sir, I was just trying to improvise and-" Reika felt his hand slap across her face, sending her tumbling to the ground. She clenched her cheek and writhed in pain, looking up slightly at the menacing Captain.

"No excuses! When I give you orders, especially for training, you shut your trap and just do it! Understand!?" The Captain shouted to her face. Reika held back hot tears that were attempting to force themselves out of her eyes, and she felt absolutely embarrassed and humiliated in front of her fellow comrades.

"You are all dismissed!" The Captain told them all, before turning to Reika "And YOU, I expect you to follow my orders from now on, understand!? I don't need some stupid runt disobeying my commands!"

"Y-yes sir…"

"GET OUT OF HERE!" The Captain ordered at the top of his lungs, frightening a flock of birds nearby, which took flight and flew away from the terror. Reika picked up her training sword and stumbled off, tears flowing down her cheeks as she silently cried back to her barracks…

* * *

**1 Month Later…**

It has been a long, painful month for Reika. Constantly, she woke up early at the crack of dawn thanks to the Captain's loud rambunctious voice, constantly doing muscle-aching exercises and training non-stop in combat. The food she got was okay, definitely not the same standard as the food she used to get back home or in the castle when she visited Drew. Whenever she wasn't training and being shouted at, she was either being smacked around or getting stuck in boring, day-long patrols around sections of the kingdom, often not returning to her barracks until late at night. Her Captain seemed to be a large chunk of the problem, berating her heavily at what he thought were her failures, and occasionally giving her a hard slap or punch to remind her to follow his orders whenever he considered her to be "insubordinate". Finally, near the end of the month Reika and her fellow comrades were assigned to certain jobs around the kingdom. Reika's job was to protect the King's Hall of Treasures, a section of the Castle dedicated to things valuable to the King. He kept everything in organized displays, with heavily armed guards patrolling the area around the clock. She finally wore the official armor, and her tentacle color would temporarily be blue, like the rest of the knights that served under the King. Reika did occasionally see Drew walk around and the two occasionally spoke to one another briefly, but the King always reprimanded him and told him not to speak to her during her job, which was fair. She liked the job, appreciating the fact she wasn't slapped around anymore, but the armor she wore often made her hot and uncomfortable, and the constant walking and standing around drove her nuts.

"_Well, at least I'm doing my duty for the King and this kingdom. This job is just as important as everything else, I'm sure."_ Reika told herself constantly, although she was slowly beginning to think otherwise. Today, she walked by a part of the Hall of Treasures she usually walked by in patrols. The items looked strange and unique, but one item always struck her eye every time she patrolled the area in the few weeks she's been there. It was a beautiful looking sword, the sunlight shining many beautiful rainbow colors on top of its silver scratchless blade. The hilt was wrapped in a leathery cloth and the bottom was a small silver orb that shined in the light, showing off her reflection. The most notable thing about the sword however, was the strange bright green tentacle wrapped around the blade tightly. A few days ago, she wanted to find out why it was here.

"Hey Carl" Reika asked, tapping a fellow guard on the shoulder to grab his attention. He spun around, waiting for her question "What's that sword that's sitting right there?" Reika asked.

"Oh that? That's the legendary Cuttlefish Inkhänder, or as many other people call it, the Octo Slayer, or the Octopus' Bane, or- you know what, I'm sure you get it. It's the sword that people of the Cuttlefish family used to defeat Octavio, the dark emperor of the Octarian Empire. The story goes that a man named Craig Cuttlefish, the recent descendant to the Cuttlefish family line was appointed by the King of that time to kill Octavio, who was causing chaos and committing mass genocide to Inklings everywhere. Cuttlefish just marched up to Octavio's castle and the two duked it out. Rumor has it it lasted a whole night, and that both men were on the brink of death, but in the end, Cuttlefish won."

"Huh, cool story. But, if it's his sword, why is it here?"

"Because Cuttlefish for some unknown reason was exiled by the King, and they took his sword to make sure he didn't start some dangerous rebellion. No one knows where he is today, and it's speculated that the Cuttlefish line pretty much ended."

"That sounds...sad. I mean, imagine you save a whole entire kingdom from destruction, only to be rejected and despised by those you saved."

"Heh, well that happened a hundred years ago. Nothing you can really do about it now." Carl told her, before walking away. Reika stood there for several minutes, admiring the sword, watching the light that reflected off the beautiful, magnificent blade. The tentacle wrapped around it looked like it was the tentacle of some real person, and that it was alive. However, Reika assumed the tentacle was just there for show. Nevertheless, it amazed her and she thought out of all the valuable trinkets and treasures the King owned, this was by far the best one.

"Reika, let's go!" Carl shouted down the hall, reminding her about her job.

"Oh, right! Sorry, I'm coming!" Reika replied, rushing down the hall as fast as she could. Now that she knew the story behind the sword, she couldn't help but admire it even more.

* * *

**Elsewhere…**

"Please, let me go! Let me go, I didn't do anything wrong!" A young Inkling girl, age 14, pleaded, being dragged by several magenta cloaked men. The mysterious men dragged her to an altar, where several symbols and shapes were surrounding a circle, all drawn in a dark reddish-brown chalk. More figures surrounded the altar, and the main cloaked man stood before it, beckoning the others to bring the girl closer. The figures muttered and repeated phrases in a language unknown to her, and the cloaked man before her removed his hood, revealing a grown male Octoling with a skinny horseshoe moustache and a short beard. His tentacles were dark maroon, and he had menacing greenish-yellow eyes that seemed to glow in the dark room, which was only lit by several candles that burned, the wax creating a strange scent in the air. His robe was different, a dark purple with a gold octopus symbol on his collar.

"Wh-where am I? Where's my mom and dad?" The little girl asked. The man, with an emotionless frown, answered.

"You are at an altar, where we praise the dark lord, who we shall rise again with the fresh stains of Inkling blood. For the spell to work, I needed a family of Inklings, a mother, a father, and their child. Your parents have already shed their ink for the spell, and their bodies are right here on the altar." The Octoling told her. Only then did she realize that her parents sat there, dead and gutted like a fish, their ink draining from their bodies and staining the stone floor. Their soulless eyes stared up at the ceiling, and their faces showed that of pure horror.

"M-Mom? D-D-Dad?" The inkling girl muttered weakly, tears cascading down her face like a waterfall. The man walked up to her, and put his hand on her shoulder and took her hand with his, walking the girl over to the altar.

"Do not fear, your parents did not die in vain. Rather, they sacrificed themselves to a great cause, whether they knew so or not. You will join them, as it is the only way…" The man told her, and he dragged the girl towards the altar. She didn't know where she was and she knew she was in danger, so the girl did the best she could to escape, punching, kicking, and flailing her arms around wildly to get her captors away. She made a run for it, however her attempt was foiled when one of the figures pulled out a small dagger and slit her leg with it. The girl cried out in pain, rolling across the floor and clutching her gushing wound. Tear marks stained her cheeks, and she cried louder and harder as she realized she would not escape, not in her condition. The figures all got on top of her, and they dragged her forcefully to the altar, where they slammed the girl on top. She could see both parents to her side, facing away.

"HELP ME! HELP ME ANYONE, PLEASE! PLE-" The girl screamed at the top of her lungs. The figures went straight to work, tearing her clothes off until she was naked and tied her to the altar with rope. She continued to squirm and scream, and the main Octoling pulled out a long dagger from his robe, stained from the girl's parent's ink. The cloaked figures around him held the girl down to restrict any further movement, and the man prepared to slit the girl's chest and gut open, revealing the organs out for all to see. She screamed much louder, shrieking like a banshee. The girl began to kick, forcing more cloaked figures to hold her legs down. The man continued the process, slamming the dagger down forcefully, stabbing her heart. The girl somehow screamed louder than before, but this did not deter the others. He struck down again at her second heart, and she began to quiet down, but still screamed with all her might. Finally, he struck her third and final heart, and the screams really began to die down. The girl still muttered and mumbled for help, the flow of tears slowing with the decibel levels of her voice. Finally, the man pulled out her ink sac before cutting it open, pouring her innermost ink on certain areas of the altar before pouring it all over her body. She was silent now, and made no movement. The figures and the man started to chant Octarian phrases softly, before growing louder and louder. Soon, the altar started to crack, with ink flowing into them and flowing out to more areas and symbols. The ceiling was open, and dark ominous clouds began to swirl around the building. Lightning struck from the dark, pitch blackness of night and into the building through the broken open ceiling. It struck the altar, and several lines of fires were created, creating a trail that lead to several large torches. The torches went alight, glowing a devilish green color that brightened the dark room only slightly. Suddenly, from the girl's body a long pillar of thick magenta ink burst forward towards the clouds and into the sky. The dark silhouette of a tall man could be seen in the pillar, and soon two arms exploded out the sides. They could hear evil laughter, before the pillar of ink stopped and exploded, blasting all the figures aside and covering them in the ink. Their bodies rolled around the ground, and once they stopped, they stood up, squinting and hoping the spell worked. The man from before looked up, covering his eyes with his arm and squinting. There, standing before him, was a tall cloaked man with a large samurai helmet with gold decorations.

"Lord Octavio, you return! Our suffering can end, and your rightful reign on this Earth can continue once more!" The man exclaimed happily, raising his arms up, before bowing on his knees. The rest of the figures did the same, and Octavio stood before them all, glaring at them evilly.

"Indeed it has, Luda. However, my power is low, and I am weaker than how I once was. Kill more Inklings, give me more power from their screams of pain and their spilled ink. I must regain my power once more, my loyal subjects."

"Yes master, we shall do as you command." The Octoling said, bowing before his leader. He then turned to the hundreds of cloaked figures, and raising his arms and outstretching his hands to them, he spoke and chanted several magic words. Suddenly, the cloaked Octolings all began to change form, growing larger and becoming more beastly. Their beaks became sharper and longer, their legs mutating into muscular clawed feet and their arms into thick tentacles that curled and writhed around unnaturally. They grew large wings, and their cloaks were torn to shreds as they changed from monstrous people to true monsters, beasts of the night. They roared and growled viciously and began to act more like wild, untamed animals.

"Go! Kill for me! Spread my influence once more and tell the Inklings that I have returned! I want it to be made known that I have risen, and that nothing will stand in my path of reconstruction. Reclaim what was once mine, conquer for the Octarian Empire!" Octavio ordered, and they all screamed and roared before flying out of the large hole in the ceiling by the hundreds, spreading across the land in the darkness of night…

* * *

"Coddamnit!" The King exclaimed angrily, slamming his fists on top of a table, shaking the things that were sitting peacefully on the surface. With him were the closest of his royal guards, all heavily armed and ready to react to any hostile gesture to the King. Also with them were several Octarians.

"I understand your displeasure, but-"

"But what!? I only agreed to the peace between our races and handing over Zapfish to you so these things don't happen! Where did the attacks occur!?" The King angrily demanded. He grabbed the collar of an Octoling man dressed in a dark blue and light violet garb with a dark purple robe and a golden octopus to connect it around his neck.

"Five villages in the outskirts of Inkopolis were attacked, no survivors from my knowledge. I sent my men there, and they couldn't find any living souls." The man said calmly, and the King threw him to the ground. The man's guards, several Octarian knights in magenta armor with long silver spears stood back into a guard stance, aiming the tips at the King. The King's royal guards prepared for a fight as well, drawing their swords and spears. However, the Octoling man calmed his knights down, giving them a simple hand gesture that signaled them to stand down. He quickly got up and brushed himself off before speaking.

"I understand your anger, but this is something that was to be expected, especially when his insane followers still exist in our world. A shame we never fully disposed of them." The man said in an emotionless tone.

"Then those monsters that attacked those villages…" The King muttered in slight fear. The Octoling remained emotionless and eerily calm.

"Yes, it signifies the return of Augustus Tenta Octavio, the 'Octarian Lord of Darkness'. I'm sure he has returned from the dead once again."

"What do I do now though? Doesn't he have some magical control over all Octarians?"

"Yes, that is apparently one of his many supernatural abilities recorded over the years. As for what to do, I suggest you do your best to repel his attacks. But do not try to find Cuttlefish or any of his kind."

"Why do you suggest that?"

"Your ancestors exiled him, did they not? He won't be useful, and if anything he will just cause more disarray and problems in your mission to make peace with us Octarians. This is your only chance to make amends between both of our species, we should not ruin it. That's why, no matter what, no one is to take the Inkhänder. Besides, if you play this smart, you can defeat Octavio without even needing to have a warrior use the Inkhänder. If my assumptions are correct, Octavio won't be at his full power, not without gathering the souls of the dead, those that his beasts and minions slaughtered. All the Inklings that died because of him give him power, their suffering and anguish only makes him and his hate stronger. If you manage to prevent such attacks like last night's from occurring once more and confront Octavio in his castle, this should all end swiftly and quickly."

"That actually sounds like a good plan...I'm sure I can pull it off. I'll try to deploy my troops and spread them throughout the Kingdom to avoid further attacks." The King said confidently.

"Sounds good. I shall head out now, these times are becoming quite dangerous by the second. I will see you later perhaps?"

"Yes, maybe later. I'll be sure to send more Zapfish to your villages."

"Thank you, you're all too kind." The man answered, bowing politely. He nodded to his guards, who began to escort him out the room. Before he could leave though, the King stopped him and asked him one more question.

"You said you were new but you knew what was going on right? So uh...what happened to the other men who used to visit me? I was shocked to see that they have been replaced..."

"Ah them...they haven't been replaced, they're just caught up in other endeavors. I'll be sure to notify them that you were worried for their safety."

"Thank you. Be safe." The king said gratefully.

"As shall you." The man replied. As he exited the city surrounding the castle and arrived into the woods beyond the plains that surrounded the city, he arrived to see a group of Octolings making a pile of other Octolings, who were dead. The pile was leaking magenta ink, and the man merely stared at it before looking up and speaking to one of the other Octolings around the area.

"The plan worked. Bury the bodies here and dispose of them." The man ordered.

"Yes sir." The Octolings quickly went to work, grabbing large shovels and digging a hole beside a very large tree. The bodies were people the man immediately recognized: they were the Octarians speaking to the King before about peace between them and the Inklings. Of course, to convince the King to prevent Cuttlefish or any relatives of his from intervening, he needed to kill the Octarians proposing peace. Even if he didn't need to, he would have killed them anyways just because they were traitors to Octavio. And no man could ever betray Octavio and live to tell the tale. He walked away, hearing the sounds of the shovels penetrating the earth in the distance, before raising his arms and opening a portal that lead to the castle. He went through, his magenta armored guards following closely behind, and the portal was soon sealed behind them.

* * *

Reika was standing beside the sword once more. The sword was lying still on its beautiful display case, resting on a red pillow outlined in gold string, which rested on top of a dark wooden pedestal. It was amazing to admire, and she loved standing there all day long, no matter how tired her limbs got from staying in the same stance for several hours. However, as much as she loved standing by the sword and watching it, over the past few days she's been hearing things. They were faint noises, what almost sounded like voices, but she mostly ignored them. After all, many people were in the castle, including other guards, maids, and castle staff, so it wasn't uncommon to hear conversations from other people. However, since last night, when she heard about the monster attacks on the villages, she's been hearing fully understandable voices. The voices were female, but she never understood a thing the faint voice told her other than the fact it mentioned the one who called himself Octavio, the one from her dream. She shuddered at the mere mention of that dream in her head, but Reika needed to keep her cool, especially in this line of work. But as the hours went by, she began to daydream and would see faint visions of random things, like a stormy night, then an ominous castle, and even a sword fight. She didn't want to suspect anything strange, but she felt like the job of standing still for several hours straight was starting to drive her mad.

"_Hey...you.."_

"What?" Reika asked to no one in particular quietly. She heard the voice once more, but it was more clear now.

"_Yes, you. The one with the long blue hair. I'm talking to you."_

"W-who are you?" Reika asked quietly. Carl, the guard who was usually with her, stared at her awkwardly. She could tell that her talking to herself was creeping him out slightly, but she didn't care that much.

"_I'm here to ask a favor...a BIG favor...I need you to take that sword. The world is depending on you, kid." _The voice was female, and sounded like the voice of a young woman.

"What? You didn't even answer my question and you're telling me this? Do you even know how much trouble I'll get into just by touching it?"

"_I know that you'll be in huge trouble, but there's not much time to explain everything right now. All I need you to know is that you need to get that sword and get out of there."_  
"B-but why me?" Reika asked curiously. She needed to know why, because without a valid reason, stealing something like this from the King could result in possible death.

"_Because...I'll explain later. Just do what I said. Trust me."_ The voice said, almost pleading but not quite. The voice then stopped talking to her, and Reika just stared at the sword. At the corner of her eye, she could see Carl taking a few peeks at her, probably suspecting something was up.

"_Should I do it? Should I really follow what this girl is telling me? I mean...this could have some serious consequences...I...I don't know...but maybe I should...she said the world was depending on me, right? But then again, I don't even recognize the voice…is it really worth it?"_

"_Come...here…"_ Reika heard, and she felt like she was losing control of her mind, and she could feel the sword calling out to her, like it was begging her to come take it.

"Hey, you okay? You've been talking to yourself so I didn't know-" Carl asked Reika, but immediately noticed that she was reaching for the sword on display. "What are you doing? Get your hands out of there!" Carl warned. Reika didn't respond.

"Don't make me do this. Get away from the sword." Carl demanded, drawing his sword from his waist. Reika grabbed the sword's handle and picked it up, before taking it off the pillow it rested on and holding it in front of her face. That's when she felt like her thoughts were coming back to her control, and she realized what she was holding in her hand.

"What the- I-I didn't mean to-" Reika tried to tell Carl, who was starting to lower his weapon when she was interrupted by the sword, and the tentacle wrapped around the blade unraveled itself and wrapped itself around Reika's arm. It tightened and she could feel the tentacle's strong grip grasp her arm. This startled her, and the movement made Carl raise his weapon once more, pointing his sword at her.

"What's going on!?" He demanded, but Reika just shook her head in disbelief

"I-I don't know! Help me get it off!" Reika told him. Suddenly, other guards noticed and ran to get a superior.

"Hey, put that down!" Another guard ordered. Judging by the fancy epaulets and a few designs on his armor, he was a higher rank than the other regular guards around the area, and must have been the current superior.

"Sir, the sword, its stuck on her arm!" Carl shouted, and the superior and a few of his fellow guards went wide eyed. That's when the King came rushing into the room with his royal guards, all heavily armed and dangerously skilled at combat, perfect for guarding his life. The King looked at Reika and the guards around her, before staring in disbelief at her arm, which still had the tentacle wrapped around it. He could see the sword clearly, and already knew what just happened. WIthout warning or any further thought, he followed the advice of the Octarians from before.

"Guards, seize her! Don't let her escape this castle!" The King ordered, drawing his own sword. The royal guards, already armed with their lances and swords, did not hesitate or question the order. They flanked Reika, coming at her from all directions.

"Oh cod...I can't possibly get out of this…" Reika mumbled, and she ducked to avoid having her head taken off by one guard's lance, before blocking two other's sword attacks. She rolled out of the way of another guard, who tried to slam an axe down at her position, and she quickly leapt out of the way of another sword swing. She nearly had her ear taken off from another lance when she finally started to fight back. Reika didn't even think about fighting back, it just sort of happened. She sliced at a guard's leg and downed him, but decided not to kill him. Two more guards with lances tried to spear her from afar, but she managed to get past them thanks to quick reflexes and knocked both weapons from their hands before kicking them both to the ground. He guard with the axe was much larger than her, but this didn't stop Reika from getting him at his legs, bottom torso and back. He kneeled down, to the ground, dropping his axe to the floor. Reika climbed on top of him from behind and slammed the bottom of her sword onto the back of his head, knocking him unconscious. He tipped over like a fallen tree, and Reika rolled forward, luckily avoiding another guard with a lance and tripping a guard that tried to run at her from the front. She quickly got to her feet, and noticing the King and his royal guards were now left, she knew immediately that she was outmatched.

"You there! Surrender immediately, and your consequences for stealing the sword will be lowered." The King demanded, raising his large sword at her. His guards took a fighting stance, and they each advanced on her position in an orderly fashion, probably using a strategy they used often in procedures like this. Reika wanted to run, her mind was constantly telling herself to move her feet, but her body responded to this by going back in to fight. She batted away a royal guard's lance, and clashed with two swordsmen, their swords pressing against each other. The royal guard's expressionless masks didn't reveal any of their actual faces, and they all seemed terrifying to her. Reika tripped one of the swordsmen by sweeping her feet across theirs, and one knocked into the other, tripping over each other and tumbling down. Reika had no time to celebrate, because she could feel the presence of more guards behind her. Nearly getting speared in the back, Reika spun out of the way and grabbed the long stick area that didn't make up the long sike at the end, and with one hand she was wrestling with the lance guard as he tried to stab her. Reika slid underneath the lance like a limbo stick, appearing on the other side and swinging the Inkhänder at him and cleaving his shoulder armor. The sword managed to get past his armor and cut into the guard's skin, the wound quickly starting to leak out ink. Another guard swung his flail around in circles, gaining momentum before throwing the chain at Reika, the chained ball wrapping around the blade of the Inkhänder. The guard pulled it towards him, ad Reika tripped and fell to the ground, now sliding across it as he dragged her across the floor, trying to smash her into pillars and displays.

"Be careful! That's valuable! No, please don't hit that!" The King said, praying in his mind that none of his valuable treasures would be trashed in the chaos. Several guards tried to stab and spear Reika as she slid across, and multiple times she needed to roll out of the way or simply just do her best not to get killed. Reika finally caught her foot on a pillar, and with all her strength she pulled the sword towards her. The blade managed to cut the chains and rend the flail useless now, and seeing that she was still outmatched as more royal guards approached, Reika finally gave in and ran out of the Hall of Treasures. Down the halls, she can hear an army of footsteps stampeding towards her, the guards in all areas in heavy pursuit. All the ruckus of their footsteps shook the castle halls, and Drew emerged from one of the rooms, his face full of confusion. He stopped a guard running by, wanting to find out what was happening.

"Hey, what's going on? Did something happen?" Drew asked, and the guard stopped.

"Yes my dear sir, a guard at the Hall of Treasures stole the Inkhänder from a display. The King ordered all guards to pursue on sight immediately." The guard explained. He seemed to be in a hurry, constantly taking short glances at the crowded hallway.

"Wait, that weird looking sword? Which guard stole it?"

"I don't know sir, all I know was the guard managed to fend off a small portion f the royal guard as well as fend off several others. We are currently trying to pursue her."

"_Her? Wait...you don't mean…"_ Drew wondered, and suddenly the look of horror came to his face, as he just imagined who could be the culprit. His face became somewhat serious, a thing that usually didn't happen.

"Get my seahorse, I'll be joining the chase." Drew ordered. The guard, who seemed to be bummed out that he couldn't join the others in the chase immediately, followed the orders, albeit reluctantly.

"Yes sir, I'll do that right away. Shall I inform your Father?"

"No, I'll inform him later. Just get my seahorse."

"Yes sir." The guard nodded and ran off, while Drew ran down the hall to get ready to join the mass of guards helping with the chase for the thief.

* * *

Reika was running through town, rushing past the large crowds of people that often gathered in the streets of Inkopolis City, the city that surrounded the King's castle. Behind her, shouts from the guards could be heard, as well as a few screams of shock from any townsperson pushed out of the way. Reika weaved her way past a few busy vendors, leaping over a cart full of fruits and tipping it over. The ensuing mess delayed the guards, who halted in front of the spilled fruits and the tipped cart. She needed to get out of the town, because there were even more soldiers patrolling the streets of the town, all of whom probably heard the message of a thief.

"_Ugh, why did I take that sword? What was a possibly thinking, being this stupid!? Of course they're going to chase after me. This day just keeps on getting better and better…"_ Reika scolded herself, and that's when she skidded to a halt, right in front of a wall of guards, all armed.

"On the order of the King, you are to surrender. Your status as a knight will be taken from you, and you will be tried for several crimes. Do as I say, and this can all go smoothly." The guard in the front, most likely a officer, said. Reika just stood there, looking at her surroundings. There wasn't much, barring several buildings that made up this town square. She could see some skinny rope that was attached to the buildings, with small banners hanging from them. She also saw a small stone, roughly the size of her palm. None of the soldiers around her were archers, and they all had close range weapons with them. Thinking quickly, or not really at all, she knelt down to the ground. The guards were confused, but the officer assumed she had surrendered.

"Good choice, you vile thief. Apprehend her, and bring her to the King." The officer commanded, and two guards stepped forward to grab her, when Reika quickly grabbed the stone off the ground and hurled it in front of her. The stone soared through the air before slamming against the helmet of the officer, ricocheting slightly off it. He fell backwards, his body limp, and the soldiers all just stood there and watched in shock as it all happened. While they were distracted, Reika ran over to a building and began climbing on top of a stack of crates and barrels, reaching a second floor of a building.

"Hey, the traitor's getting away! After her!" By now, the soldiers that had blocked her path had seen her attempt to escape, and now tried to surround her. Reika grabbed the rope, swinging the sword and cutting it at one end. She then leapt off the wall and swung past the guards, nearly missing the blades of several spears that were thrusted upwards. She swung to another building, and then cut the rope and swung over to another, before letting go and landing. Now that she was a good distance away from her enemies, Reika continued to run. By now, townspeople began to clear the area, not wanting to be caught in the middle of the chaos.

"_Ugh, why did I listen to that stupid voice? If I had just not been stupid, I could have kept my job, like any other sensible, normal person...oh cod, there's more…"_ Reika thought, and she saw several more soldiers coming her way, some of them cutting through several city blocks to try to cut her off. Suddenly, Reika felt something whizz past her ear, and on a wooden barrel in front of her, she could see an arrow made of solidified ink had embedded itself deep into the wood, splintering it.

"_Carp, they've brought archers!"_ Reika exclaimed in her mind, and ducked to avoid another arrow. She spun to the right to avoid three more arrows that landed on the ground beside her.

"Wow, who knew I'm great at dodging stuff?" Reika muttered to the air, and continued to run, having to get out of the way of several dangerous arrows flying at her. Reika found a wooden barrel lid with a nice large metal ring for a handle. She grabbed it as she ran past, knowing that it could help her survive for when she arrived at the gate. After several minutes of running, dodging arrows and more soldiers, she reached the front gate. The front gate was a large iron gate that was a section of the large wall that surrounded the town. On both sides of the gate were open, roofless watchtowers where a night, fires would be lit to light up the wall. Archers would patrol the top looking out for any signs of enemy attack. But right now, the wall and the watchtowers were crawling with several archers, all with bows in hand and aiming at her. The instant Reika got within firing range, she held up the barrel lid as ink tipped arrows flew through the air. She could hear hundreds of them whizz past her head, and she even managed to bat some away with her sword, much to her surprise. Behind her, the soldiers were still in pursuit, now on seahorses, which would easily outrun her.

"Come on men, shoot her!"

"We're trying, sir! She's still managing to push through our defenses!"

"Then try aiming for a change! You don't train all day for nothing, do ya?" The archers pulled back their strings and released another swarm of arrows, which rained down on her heavily. The blue color of the ink arrows seemed to imitate heavy rainfall in a tropical storm, but this rain was deadly. Any of them that hit her could potentially end her life right then and there, and so she had to be careful. Several arrows had managed to pierce through the temporary shield that was the barrel lid, but they weren't able to reach her. A seahorse was tied to a post near the gate, and Reika quickly rushed under the gate where the archers couldn't shoot her. She soon got onto the seahorse, which panicked slightly before Reika soothed its nerves and calmed it down. She then cut the rope that it was tied to, and kicked it so the animal would jolt forward into a full sprint. The seahorse rushed past the city wall and into the fields, and behind her, Reika could see the archers turning around and aiming.

"Fire! Don't let her escape!" She could hear, and soon a whole volley of arrows came raining down on her once more. She turned the seahorse towards a more wooded area, hoping the trees and their maze of branches would block some arrows. Her plan did work, however she felt a searing pain as one arrow embedded itself on the back of her lower leg. She winced in pain, and the ink seeping in felt horrible.

"Faster! Ha!" Reika commanded, and the seahorse ran faster, trying its hardest to escape the arrows as well. Another arrow hit Reika's shoulder armor, getting stuck there, however it didn't pierce her skin. Suddenly, she could hear the sounds of more seahorses in the back, and she took a small glimpse behind her to see a squad of calvary, armed with bows and swords, running after her. An arrow hit her arm, getting past the armor and cutting her. She could feel the small wound bleed but ignored the pain and the feeling of ink sliding in the space between her armor and skin. Two soldiers managed to catch up to her, swiping at Reika from both sides with their swords. She ducked, and knocked one off with a powerful swing while the other managed to get her right leg, leaving a small gash in the leg armor. Now, she was starting to feel pain all over from the wounds, but still, Reika pushed on.

"_Oh good, you're alive."_ A female voice, the same one from before that asked her to take the sword, began to speak to Reika in the midst of all this chaos.

"Why are you talking to me now!?" Reika exclaimed, much to the confusion of the soldier riding alongside her.

"_Sorry, something came up and I got busy. Glad to see you did my favor. Now, I can see you're in quite the predicament…"_

"'Predicament' is a bit of an understatement, don't you think? And how can you see me?" Reika asked, right as she swerved her seahorse to the right and slammed against the soldier riding next to her, knocking him and his seahorse to the ground where they rolled like a bowling ball, gathering up a small dust cloud.

"_I'll explain that to you after, IF you stay alive long enough. But first, I have to help you stay alive and get out of there. If you've ever been outside the city, you'll know that Inkopolis Field is surrounded, for the most part, by a large forest. To your right, there should be a large tree with a strange deformity that makes it look like a...let's just say it looks like a big tuna."_

"What!? How the shell am I supposed to know if a tree looks like a tuna!?"

"_Just look for a really weird tree that's huge, okay!?"_

"Alright, heading there now…" Reika sighed, and turned her horse around to her right, and she looked around constantly, observing each tree closely.

"_Tree that looks like a tuna...tuna...I could really go for some- no, stop it! You're about to die, focus Reika!"_ Reika scolded herself, before nearly getting headshotted for the hundredth time by another arrow. Reika finally found a large, very strange looking tree and she kicked her seahorse so that it broke into a full sprint towards it. The woods were deep and thick, with bushes, shrubs, and of course trees covering every inch of ground. Low lying branches served as dangerous in Reika's case, because if she were to get knocked down by any of these branches, her pursuers would definitely have her head by the next minute.

"Okay, where to now?" Reika asked weakly.

"_Alright, go straight until you find a small tree that has vines wrapped around it, then run to the left and maybe weave around the woods until you find a lake with a small waterfall. The tree should be noticeable, because the vines have these beautiful lime-green flowers that smell lovely."_

"Okay...I didn't need that extra detail" Reika coughed a bit and covered her mouth with her left arm. When she moved it away from her mouth, she saw some blue ink dripping off the armor "but that's fine." Reika finished.

"_Hey, be honest with me kid: do you think you'll make it?"_ The voice asked. She seemed to sound worried, and Reika really thought about it. What if she doesn't make it? She could already feel the ink bleeding from her leg and arm wounds and sifting around between her skin and armor. Her armor was hot in the summer heat, and she was starting to sweat. She felt awful right now, and she really didn't know if she would survive. What would Drew think? Would he even know?

"I...I don't know...I might not make it…" Reika answered honestly. Suddenly, the parts of the Knight's Code the King read aloud during the ceremony began to replay itself in her head.

"_Honor your King and those who are above you with utmost respect."_

"_Understand your duty to protect and serve this kingdom, and do not run from your duty."_

"_The promises that you have made as part of your covenant with this kingdom are to be kept._

_Betrayal to this kingdom and your ruler is the biggest crime you could ever commit." _All Reika could hear in her head were those three points, over and over and over again like a broken record player.

"_Ugh...why do I keep hearing that? Is it because I broke every point there all in one day?"_ She asked herself. There was a silence on the other side, the voice hadn't said anything for a while, and before she could wait for the voice to speak back, she saw another arrow whizz past her head and land on a tree trunk in front of her. Reika had her seahorse go faster, trying her best not to get struck down by heavy branches. She could hear angry shouts and orders from the soldiers chasing her, and then another arrow came flying from nowhere and struck her seahorse in the neck. Blood spilled out of the seahorse as it panicked and cried in agony, before slumping over and making Reika fall. She quickly got her foot out from under the dead seahorse's body, and she ran the rest fo the way, weaving past and stepping around meticulously around the maze of trees and plethora of plants. The dead leaves and fresh grass crunched below her feet with every step she took, and she heard the shouts from the soldiers become louder and louder. They were getting closer, and would soon catch up.

"Ugh...armor...so uncomfortable…so heavy…" Reika muttered weakly, feeling like the armor suddenly weighed more than it did. Thinking fast, Reika started to pull pieces of it off her body, tossing them aside on the forest floor. The stained, heavy, and damaged armor landed softly, and now Reika was in just her undergarments, which consisted of a bra and a pair of shorts, both of which were black. She kept running, ignoring the searing pain of her wounds. She found the tree, and ran past it to the left, wandering around. Finally, she reached the lake with the small waterfall as the voice said, but no one was there.

"Hello? I...I came like you said…" Reika said out in the open weakly. Behind her, she could hear the seahorses halt to a stop, and the soldiers got off, approaching her from behind.

"Stand down. There's no point in fighting us all, not in your sorry state."

"Heh...funny you mention that...I feel fine, really I do, just a little cuts…" Reika said, chuckling nervously. She swiped the Inkhänder at the lead soldier in the front, who stepped back and dodged it. He then slashed at her, cutting across her open stomach. Ink started to pour from the deep gash, and Reika held her wound, which felt hot, and the pain unbearable. She could feel tears beginning to form from the corner of her eyes, but she still pressed on, fighting back and attacking the soldiers the best she could. However, they easily overpowered her, and the lead soldier was right: she couldn't fight them in her sorry state. One soldier managed to cut her back, another got her other leg, and the lead guard managed to get her right shoulder and side of the head. Reika fell to her knees, the Inkhänder still wrapped around her arm and stuck in her grip.

"Let go of the sword, and let's make this quick." The lead soldier demanded.

"Can't...it won't come off." Reika answered, spitting out ink towards him, which landed on his cheek. He glared at her, wiping the ink off before punching her across the face.

"Perhaps it won't come off when you're alive. Let's try when you're dead." The lead soldier nodded, and the other two began to kick and punch Reika, who just laid still on the ground and took the hits. Finally, he gestured his hand for them to stop, moving her body aside with his foot so her chest faced upwards toward the sky. Reika had a small smile on her face, feeling like she helped someone. But the thought of dying like this, a horrible, embarrassing death, lingered in her mind...it didn't matter now. No one was here except them, no one was coming to save her.

"Aren't you going to *cough cough* ask if I have any last words?" Reika asked the soldier.

"Pfft, a criminal scum like you doesn't deserve the privilege to speak their last wish. You will die, a criminal and a forgettable low life. Goodbye." The lead soldier said, and Reika closed her eyes and went unconscious from her heavy wounds, and the lead soldier prepared to drive his sword deep into her chest. That is, until one of his guards was hit in the shoulder by a small sword. He screamed in pain, scaring off a few birds from the trees. He landed in the shallow, feet-deep waters of the lake, when suddenly long blades of underwater grass stretched from the water, wrapping around him and pulling him down deeper. The soldier could only scream for less than a second before all that was left was a faint imprint of blue ink in the water, his armor, and his sword. The lead soldier and his companion were on high alert, scanning the trees around them.

"Who's there!? Show yourself, cowards!"

"Very well." A female voice replied, and a green ball of ink launched at his fellow soldier, hitting him in the chest. A large blotch of green ink now stained his chestplate, and he scrambled to his feet, albeit weakly, arming himself with a sword. It didn't matter, because soon his knees were shot by two arrows, and he fell to the ground. A spike made of earth rose from the place he was lying, stabbing through his chest and splatting him. The lead soldier was now left, and he looked back to see that the sword near the lake that took out the first of his troops was now gone. He had little time to react before someone swung that sword at him, and he efficiently blocked the attack. His assailant was a young girl, not as young as the one he was chasing after. This one had some sort of black eye protection that glittered in the sunlight, and she wore a pink uniform. She was quite skilled with a sword, easily keeping him at his toes. He managed to sweep his feet from underneath her and trip his opponent, and he smiled victoriously as he prepared to deal the final blow. However, the girl smiled, and it was only then that he realized there was another, but it was too late as long vines wrapped around his body, squeezing him tightly. He dropped his sword on the ground, and the second attacker emerged from the woods, a young girl, around the same age as the pink one. Both were Inklings, although this one had gray tentacles with some green tips and highlights while the other had black with pink tips and highlights. The second attacker wore a mask that covered her mouth, and she wore a green outfit.

"Unhand me, you fiends!"

"I will, in just a second. But first…" The green Inkling leaned in, close to the soldier's ear.

"Tell the King I'm going to borrow that sword and that girl for a bit, okay? Thanks." The green Inkling whispered. The vines loosened, and the lead soldier was dropped to the floor. He grabbed his sword, pointing it at her, his mind filled with violent thoughts. However, she didn't seem the least bit frightened.

"I'm gonna gut you, you witch!" He shouted in fury, only for a large plant with a big, purple head and white spikes engulfed him, swallowing the lead soldier whole before licking its lips with its long tongue. The green Inkling petted the plant creature, touching the smooth surface of its head.

"Good boy. Now, be a good chomper and go bring that bad man to the King, got that?" The green Inkling asked, and the creature burrowed itself into the ground before digging away, leaving a path of disturbed dirt along the forest floor. The green Inkling then ran over to Reika, who was still unconscious and now had a small pool of orange ink forming beneath her body.

"Is she dead?" The pink Inkling asked.

"No. I don't think so. Come on Callie, let's take her to our home."

"Alright." Callie, the pink Inkling, answered, and carried Reika while she followed the green Inkling through the forest, leaving behind the lake...

* * *

**Phew, that was a lot. Regardless, I'm quite happy with what I wrote so far. If you noticed, I did hide many references to things I like in this chapter, including other video games. Actually, there were some Castlevania inspired elements put into this chapter, since I love the series. I wonder if anyone can find all the references? Anyways, that's all for now. Be sure to leave a review!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Reunion**

**New chapter is up! This one isn't as long as the previous chapter, and most chapters won't be that long. Also again, sorry for the long delay between this chapter and the previous one, I was caught up in some stuff and school. Thankfully, summer is here so I won't be having school for a while, which means more time to write stories (when I feel like it). Anyways, hopefully you enjoy!**

* * *

"Octavio my lord, your creatures have ravaged a few villages on the outskirts of the countryside, only a handful of Inklings survived combined." Luda reported, walking beside the tall Octoling lord. Beside them were three pairs of magenta armored spearmen, who were infamous for their combat skills. Their spears have the ability to extend to a longer length to reach far away intruders, and the magenta Octarian ink that would cover the spears in battle often left a clear message for those who dared to fight them.

"Very good, Luda. I suppose the current King of Inkopolis has been distressed about this news. Now, I believe you've spoken with him about his methods to make peace between the Octarians."

"Yes my lord, he's quite stressed out about the recent attacks, especially since it hasn't helped his efforts. However, the King isn't stupid, he knows your return represents a bad omen." Luda affirmed. Behind them, they can hear the screams of a small Inkling boy as he was being tossed around by Octavio's creatures. The creatures tossed the boy around, toying with and catching him with their mouths. Finally, one of them ripped the boy's right arm off and they all jumped in, tearing the Inkling to shreds. Not once did the guards, Luda, or Octavio look back.

"Hmph, how ironic considering he's an Inkling of all things. No matter, it won't be long before a Cuttlefish finds out about my return and comes to destroy me."

"Actually, I've solved that problem."

"How so, Luda? Does Cuttlefish cease to exist?"

"I'm not sure about whether he's alive, however I have convinced the King to never let anyone touch or even take the Inkhänder, so even if a Cuttlefish arrives and tries to take it, they will receive heavy resistance from the Inklings themselves."

"I see. Very good, Luda, you're starting to impress me. Go visit the King again and discuss with him future plans to 'stop me'. I shall arrive shortly, and the King and I will have a little talk amongst ourselves." Octavio said.

"Yes, my lord." Luda answered, bowing down to his leader before departing. Octavio watched at the corner of his eye as his loyal follower left his presence. In the grassy plain they stood in, Octavio sat down, the long blades swaying in the wind. He could see small insects flying around, butterflies flying back and forth between the flowers that dotted the plain. He could hear the birds chirping in the distance. The whole scene was beautiful in his eyes, however, other things were on Octavio's mind, and he knew he had work to do. Quickly, Octavio closed his eyes, and began to chant a spell. The guards watched silently like statues as a structure rose from the grassy plains. Large stone brick walls, pillars, and towers emerged from the ground, disturbing the field. Butterflies and birds scattered from the commotion, and the grass swayed wildly, with loose blades being cut from their roots and being caught in the wind created from the spell. The wind surrounding the building swirled violently, picking up dust, pebbles, grass and the unfortunate small creatures that got caught. Roofs and other smaller towers rose, and soon the building appeared to be a castle. It was the same castle Octavio had from prior years, his base of operations. His home.

Once the building was finished being summoned, the dirt and dust near its base settled. The wind stopped bellowing and swirling around, and the different things it caught during the spell fell down to the field below. Octavio stood up from his spot, opening his eyes and taking a deep breath of fresh air. The drawbridge in the front lowered, and two large steel doors opened slowly by themselves.

"Ah, my home. Let's begin…" Octavio muttered to himself, and he walked on in past the walls, his guards following close behind.

* * *

"What!?" Luda exclaimed.

"Yes, I'm sorry to inform you that my guards were outdone by a traitor in their ranks. She managed to steal the sword, as well as escape. However, the search parties managed to wound her greatly, so it's debatable whether the thief will survive or not." The King said. In the back was Drew, listening to the conversation, but not speaking one word.

"Yes, but that doesn't mean that we are safe! For all we know, a Cuttlefish descendant could find the Inkhänder and have it in their hands! Once that happens, they could easily tear through us Octarians, and your peace treaty is as good as gone."

"We know. I have several search parties out right now, looking for the sword. In case our thief did survive and still is in possession of the sword, I relayed a message across the whole kingdom of Mollusca, so that even the people can assist in looking for her." Drew spoke up, telling Luda about their solution.

"Very well," Luda agreed reluctantly, "but for the time being, this thief just created a whole new problem for us." He added. Suddenly, the room became a shade darker. Light was hardly coming through the windows, and instead shadows replaced the light. Everyone in the throne room could hear the wind howling outside, the trees swaying violently. The King and his guards, along with Luda and his guards rushed outside the castle, where they saw a large swirl of magenta ink flowing through the sky, pushing the clouds away and covering the sun. The ink was in large humongous masses, blotting out light and swirling around, trying to form a distinct shape. Finally, the ink formed the shape of someone's head, and the King knew exactly what was going on.

"Octavio…" The King muttered.

"_**Good morning Inklings. I was starting to wonder if you had all forgotten I existed."  
**_"Octavio! What is your business here, what do you want!?" The King demanded. The blot of Ink that resembled Octavio's face laughed.

"_**I'm assuming you're the King of Mollusca? I have come to, negotiate, with you King. I have a few demands I want you to fulfill, as maybe an apology for your wretched kind."**_ Octavio explained. The guards, who had their weapons pointed to the sky, lowered their arms when Drew signalled them to stand down.

"What are these demands you are bringing to me Octavio?"

"_**I'm glad you asked. You will hand over the Great Zapfish and give it to me immediately. You will also hand over the legendary Inkhänder so that it will be in my possession, and to assure you don't backstab me like your sick, filthy ancestors. You will also sacrifice the land that is currently occupied by Pesci and Tilapia Country as well as their people over to me. Finally, you will find every single Inkling related to the Cuttlefish family, and kill each and every one of them. Does that sound fair?"**_

"The Great Zapfish!? No, I cannot allow such a thing! I know what you will do with its power, and I know you will use it for your personal malicious goals. I'm not allowing you to commit genocide on my people!" The King refused angrily.

"_**Ah, but you haven't heard the best part, pathetic oath. Failure to meet my demands and do as I say will result in my army tearing through everything, and I mean EVERYTHING you love and hold so dear to you. All your people? I will eradicate every last man, woman, child and baby, and so long as they're an Inkling, they shall never see the light of day ever again. Your cities, towns and villages? I will burn to the ground. And your royal family? I will massacre each and every one, right down to your son. Does that sound fair?"**_ Octavio asked, his shadow floating ominously over the whole city of Inkopolis.

"I will...fulfill these demands...but only if you agree to make amends with us Inklings, and start an era of peace between us and the Octarians." The King said. Drew was shocked at this statement, and grabbed his father by the arm.

"Father! You can't do this!" Drew begged.

"This is the only way, son. Both of our species need peace, we both need a new start." The King explained, but Drew didn't listen.

"So we are going to start an era of peace through mass execution? What about those who are related to the Cuttlefish family and don't want to fight? Are you going to kill them in cold blood?"

"Andrew! I make the decisions, and I made this one. The goal outweighs the results of the demands being fulfilled, and I see that as a better solution, for both now and for the future. Think about it, son." The King argued, before ripping his arm out of Drew's grasp and turning back to face Octavio.

"_**I'm impressed. For once, the Inklings listen and learn! But remember, if you deceive me, I will not hesitate to perform mass genocide among your population."**_**  
**"Octavio, there is a problem. A girl has stolen the Inkhänder, and although we believe she may be dead, we cannot locate the sword itself."

"_**Find it, and once you do, give it to me. Find the girl if she is alive, and kill her. If anyone decides to be a 'hero' and tries to save her, then stop them. I will give you five days. Five days for you to find the sword and give it to me. If you don't I will start to demand more villages than the ones I already named to be slaughtered. Five days, King of Mollusca, five days."**_ Octavio warned, and with that, the ink that made up his face was distorted. Soon, it began to expand like a bubble, covering even more of the city, before the ball of floating ink popped and exploded. The droplets of magenta Octarian ink from the ball was scattered all over and rained down on the city like a storm, with people running and screaming in the streets. The King watched solemnly, while Drew slipped away, disappointed at his father.

* * *

**Elsewhere...**

It was bright, wherever Reika was. Bright, white light shone down on her eyes, and she groggily raised her left hand to cover her face. For some reason, her right hand felt heavy, and she felt too fatigued to raise it up. She remembered a bit of what happened, running from some people, getting wounded and then fading to black…

"_Am I...am I dead? Is this heaven?..." _Reika wondered to herself in her head. The light still shone onto her face, blinding her.

"Oh, she's up." A female voice said. She sounded calm and down to Earth, her voice somewhat soothing. Reika remembers hearing her voice, but she forgot where...

"Really? Wow, it's been so long!" Another voice said, this one also female. Her voice sounded more energetic and cheery.

"Callie, it's only been one day. She took quite the beating out there, especially by herself." Reika raised her head slightly, getting her eyes out of the bright light. She opened her eyes a bit wider, and could only see some fuzzy, blurry figures of what looked like two people, one getting closer to her. Her eyes adjusted, and her vision became clear enough so she saw the two people in front of her. They were both Inkling girls, however Reika assumed they were older than her. One wore a pink hat and some eye wear of some kind, as well as a pink outfit, while the other contrasted from her and wore green everything, from her jacket to her hat. The green girl wore a mask of some kind, concealing her mouth. She walked over to Reika, kneeling beside the Inkling and observing her.

"You okay? Sorry if you had to take a bit of a beating, I tried to come as soon as I could. But, you're alive, and that's good right?" The girl said, putting her hand on Reika's shoulder.

"Mmmph...where...where am I?" Reika said, shifting her weight to a more comfortable position. She noticed she was lying on a hammock of some kind, tied between two logs stuck in the dirt. The hammock wasn't too high in the air, and was pretty close to the ground.

"Oh, you're safe. You are at my Gramp's cabin."

"Cabin…?" Reika questioned. Her head hurt a bit, and she tried to get up with her right arm, only to feel something heavy and sharp lean against her body. The green Inkling noticed, and she grabbed Reika's right arm and pulled it away from her body.

"Careful! You've still got the Inkhänder stuck on you." The girl said, cautiously laying Reika's arm so that it dangled off the edge of the hammock. That's when Reika noticed the sword from before, stuck on her arm and dragging across the dirt below. By now, Reika seemed to have recovered a bit more, and was starting to feel more energized and awake than a few seconds before.

"Oh thing...it just stuck on me. The tentacle that was wrapped around the sword, it just unraveled and kinda wrapped around my arm."

"Yeah, it does that." The green Inkling said. Suddenly Reika remembered exactly where she heard her voice from.

"Wait...you're that voice! The one that was telling me how to escape! And I nearly died!" Reika exclaimed.

"Yeah...again, sorry I wasn't there sooner. Oh right, where are my manners. My name is Marie, and that right there playing around with the ball is Callie." The green Inkling, now known as Marie, announced herself. She pointed over to the pink girl, Callie, who was running around clumsily chasing a ball. Reika felt like she's heard those names before, but she didn't really care about that right now. What she did care about, however, was the many unanswered questions spinning around her head.

"Okay...but why me? Why am I here? And why is this sword. *ugh*, not-*argh* coming off?" Reika asked, trying several times to rip the tentacle off her arm, to no avail, The tentacle remained where it was, not even budging.

"You're tensing up too much, try to calm a bit and get the sword to loosen its grip on you." Marie instructed. Reika tilted her head to the side, giving her a puzzled look, but Marie remained there, just waiting. Finally, Reika just closed her eyes, regulating her breathing, and tried her best to be calm. Marie stood up, walking back a few steps.

"_Come on please, let go of my arm...please let go…"_ Reika said in her head, but she couldn't feel it release its grip.

"_Um...let go?"_ Reika asked questioningly.

"What's wrong with her?" Callie whispered to Marie's ear.

"The Inkhänder is stuck to her arm. She's trying to get it off." Marie replied silently.

"Oh." Callie said, and the two watched silently as Reika tried to get the sword off her arm.

"_Maybe I need to be more firm with the command? Okay, you can do this...let go. Now."_

"By the way, commanding it like a dogfish isn't going to help you. You need to think about what you want it to do." Marie commented.

"Sorry…" Reika replied, her eyes still closed. Callie chuckled quietly, finding the whole thing to be funny.

"_Okay...think, THINK!" _Reika told herself. She drifted in her thoughts, trying her best to think of the sword like a person, like she was trying to calm an angered person down after a big fight.

"_Hmph, reminds me of Blue…"_ Reika thought amusingly. That gave Reika an idea, and she started to remember times way back when she would try to calm Drew down, mostly when he got angry because he was pestered by his father's advisors not to hang out with "peasants" like her. Suddenly, the tentacle wrapped around her arm was starting to move a bit, and started to release its grip on her arm until finally it unraveled itself and wrapped itself around the Inkhänder's blade. Reika opened her eyes, and dropped the sword to the ground in shock, which landed with a small thud.

"W-wow...I did it! It's off!" Reika said happily.

"Great job! I knew you could do it!" Callie added, congratulating her.

"Um, thanks…?"

"Good job kiddo. You just need a bit more practice, and you'll get the hang of it in no time."

"Cool. I think I found a way to get it off a bit easi-"

"Girls, is that you? What's all the racket out there?" An old voice called out. The cabin door swung open, and an elderly squid came walking out, holding a cane to support himself. He squinted towards where they were, and seemed to nearly jump out of his shoes when he saw them. Suddenly, the old man was rushing over to them as fast as his old legs could take him.

"Hey Gramps!" Callie greeted, running over to give him a hug.

"Hello Callie" The old man said to her, hugging the girl back, before breaking off and walking over to the other two "hello Marie" Marie gave him a hug as well, and he looked at Reika.

"Ah, I see you've got your sister here, Marie." The old man pointed out.

"Yeah, all in one piece, thankfully." Marie added. Reika thought her jaw was about to fall off.

"S-sister? Woah woah woah, how does THAT work!? I don't even know you people!" Reika exclaimed.

"Relax, we can explain AFTER you meet my Gramps. Reika, this is Craig Cuttlefish, the man who defeated Augustus Tenta Octavio about a hundred years ago."

"A HUNDRED!?" Reika exclaimed once more.

"Yes, one hundred. Pretty old, I know."

"How is he even still alive…" Reika muttered.

"Here, we can talk more about this inside, where it's more comfy and cozy. Come, welcome home sis." Marie said casually, and she walked over to the cabin alongside her grandpa. Reika ran to them and followed close behind, while Callie was daydreaming and had been distracted. Finally, she realized everyone was heading inside, and she panicked.

"Hey guys, wait for meeee!"

* * *

"Reika, you must be hungry, here, have some of my crabby cakes. They're very delicious, I'm sure you'll love them." Cuttlefish said, walking over with a plate of them. Reika hesitantly grabbed one, looking at the food in her hands. Callie and Marie grabbed one themselves, and Marie noticed Reika's hesitation.

"Hey, they're good. Trust me."

"_I don't even know you…" _Reika said in her head.

"_I know you don't, but I got you out of a sticky situation, didn't I?" _Marie's suddenly said in Reika's head, freaking her out.

"_AH! What are you doing? How are you talking to me in my head!?"  
"Magic. Literally. Come on, we aren't going to poison you or anything, we aren't vile witches."_

"_F-fine."_ Reika gave in, and she took one small bite of the crabby cake. After that, all she could taste was an explosion of flavor, with all different kinds bouncing around her tongue and mouth. The crabby cake tasted so good, and never had she ever thought she ate anything as tasty as this snack in her hands. Suddenly, she couldn't help but to take more bites, and soon she had eaten the whole thing. Marie, watching her eat, giggled at the scene.

"Heh, good, isn't it?"

"Y-yeah…" Reika replied, a bit embarrassed.

"Are you two having secret head conversations? No fair!" Callie whined. Marie just shrugged.

"Hey, she is my sister. Besides, she needed to know how good Gramp's crabby cakes are."

"Still not fair. I get to get in on the next one, got it?" Callie asked.

"Cal, we have our own conversations when nobody is around."

"Yeah, I guess you're right...I guess she DID need to know how awesome Gramp's crabby cakes are! If I could eat only one thing in this whole world, it would be that!" Callie said, earning a laugh from Cuttlefish.

"Aw, you're making me feel embarrassed." Cuttlefish said. He sat beside Callie, while Marie was sitting next to Reika.

"So, we all know you're super confused about what's going on, so let's get all of that out of the way" Marie said "So, what do you want to hear first?" She asked Reika, who thought a bit.

"I want to know more about the sword, and your Gramps."

"Fair enough, care to explain Gramps?"

"Sure Marie."

"_Hey, are you still here?" Reika asked in her head, wondering if Marie was still listening._

"_Sure thing. What do you want?"_

"_Can we talk here too? I mean, I don't want to be rude to Callie or anything but…"_

"_Don't worry, Callie will understand. Hey, Cuttlefish is your Gramps too, it's okay if you call him that."_ Marie told her, trying to make her feel more comfortable.

"_A-alright...a bit weird for me right now, but okay."_ Reika replied. By now, Cuttlefish was starting to tell the story. But first…

"Young lady, do you know who the Octarians are?"

"I've heard of them, yes."

"Good. Because this story is all about them, and us." Marie stated.

"It all started several hundred years ago, back when Inklings and Octarians co-existed peacefully. They lived together, and both species were close friends. After all, we were close relatives species-wise with one another. But one day, the tides start to rise for reasons I don't know. This stirs panic, and a war was brewing." Cuttlefish explained.

"Oh, I heard about this stuff! They taught this to me at school."

"What school did you attend young lady?"

"I don't know, I think Inkblot? Yeah, there. The King himself gave me special permission to attend there, though I have no clue why, I mean, I was pretty poor compared to him. Come to think of it, he's always gave me special treatment..."

"Ah, that makes sense."

"What does?"

"Gramps thinks all schools in Inkopolis right now teach royal propaganda and leave out important things in our history." Callie said.

"But do they?" Reika asked curiously.

"Yeah, pretty much." Marie replied.

"Ah, back to the story. Anyways, the war was about land, or as we like to call it, turf. Both sides were at a heavy stalemate, and we were both suffering, so both sides decided it was best to instead help one another out. The current leader of the Octarians at the time, Augustus Tenta Octavio, was the one who mostly wanted both sides to help each other, as he could see how we were both struggling to survive with the war going on."

"Okay, then why isn't it a happy story? What happened?" Reika asked, and Cuttlefish began to explain further.

"Well you see, the King's son as well as the Inkling Bishop himself decided that the Octarians weren't deserving of the land, and that they caused so much of the suffering we Inklings were facing because of the war. And so…they went...they found Octavio's wife, the woman he loved so dearly, his children...and they mercilessly slaughtered all of them. However, there are rumors that one of his daughters survived the attack and escaped, but I cannot confirm as it all happened way before my time." Cuttlefish said. Reika was shocked, and felt somewhat sympathetic to Octavio.

"So...they murdered his whole family...why?"

"Because they were idiots who wanted to feel like they won, who felt like they had things taken from them when in reality things were taken from both sides. They were selfish dummies." Callie said, feeling a bit angered at hearing the story despite the fact she's heard it several times by now.

"So...what did Octavio do?"

"Octavio...his rage unleashed. Power that no one knew existed was unlocked. Those men took away all he had loved, his wife and family. They took it all, and Octavio could no longer see any good in the Inkling kind. Instead, all he saw were the greedy ones, the selfish and the prideful ones that took his family away from him. He felt betrayed, he felt lied to. And then, that's when Octavio went on a rampage…

He summoned monsters, an army of creatures to kill for him. His people, he militarized and gained under his control to use as an army. Together, they wiped out villages upon villages, leaving nothing left standing. If you know anything about Octarians, a few of them are quite skilled in the arts of magic. Octavio was no exception, and he was the greatest of them all. Not one hero could defeat him, and so he killed most of the resistance against him. Octavio wanted the Inklings all to die, he wanted to take everything they had just as they did to him."

"Ouch...that's...that's quite the harsh punishment."

"Indeed it was, young lady. It was only those men that weren't innocent, and the people Octavio was executing by the masses were innocent of his family's blood. Many tried to defeat Octavio, and those who tried all fell to his army. One day, Octavio's army attacked a small little town called Calamari County, a town so small that everyone living in it were considered family to one another. The people that lived in that town were all so close, and they all decided to fight against his army, even when the odds were against them. This, whipper snapper, is the start of the Cuttlefish clan."

"So...how'd you guys make the sword? How did you guys defeat Octavio and his army?"

"Well, you see, the Cuttlefish family relic was a...large metal squid. That relic was like a good luck charm, and we never lost a battle for our town since that relic was made from the very hands of our ancestors before Octavio's time. So, a few of the Cuttlefish members melted the relic, and turned it into a sword, one we would take into battle to fight Octavio."

"Okay, but a metal sword isn't going to do anything, no matter how 'lucky' you think it is." Reika argued. Marie nudged her arm, and Reika turned to see Marie mouth "just listen".

"Ah, you are correct. Which is why your ancestors traveled all the way to an old lagoon, one made of ink. Octavio was smart, he knew some Inklings would go to the lagoon, so he had his monsters guard the area well. We managed to defeat the guards and got past, where we met the creature that lived inside: the Kraken."

"Wait what!? The Kraken is fake though, every history teacher at my school said so. I mean, it's fake, right? You know, big fairy tale creature that doesn't exist?"

"Bah, dumb royal propaganda. You should never trust the King, no matter what." Cuttlefish said bitterly, grabbing another crabby cake.

"No, it's real. It existed ever since the age of humans, and still managed to hide from them for all these years." Callie added.

"Okay, so you found the Kraken in this lagoon, now what? Did you fight it? Did it try to kill you?"

"Yes, we fought it, but not for the reason you think. It didn't try to kill us, rather it wanted us to prove ourselves and show that we could be responsible with its strength. You may not know, but the Kraken evolved as we did. It is immune to water unlike us, but it did have a small spirit when it was splatted and it swam in ink as well. Think of it as an Inkling, but it never was able to change shape and mostly stayed The Kraken knew our intentions to stop Octavio was good, but it couldn't just offer its power to us. They fought it, and won, or that's the simple way of putting it. The Kraken's spirit traveled into the plain old metal sword, and it turned into the weapon you have today. Actually, the Inkhander was always used ever since then to defeat Octavio over the years."

"So, they all traveled over to Octavio's place, beat the carp out of him and that's it?"

"Well, Octavio would return every once in a while, but there was always a Cuttlefish to stop him. My Gramps killed him about a hundred years ago. So yeah, there was always one of us around to take him on. That is, until now." Marie pointed out.

"Why, why now?"

"Well, it has to do with you…" Callie said.

"Really? What does this all have to do with me?" Reika asked.

"I think we've done enough explaining. Here Reika, let's set up your room upstairs while those two chat or...or do whatever they want." Marie said, and she gestured for the Inkling to follow her. When the two disappeared, Callie looked at Cuttlefish, before looking out at the lake that was in front of their cabin.

"Gramps, can we go outside on the lake?"

"Sure can! Let me go get the boat."

"Yay!" Callie cheered, and happily followed behind him.

* * *

**Inkopolis, King's Castle…**

It was a lonely night. Drew was currently in his room, rolling around in his bed. He had been trying to sleep, but everytime he closed his eyes, all he could see was his disgust for his father. His father shouldn't have agreed on Octavio's terms, and Drew knew that the octopus would destroy them all regardless of whether they fulfilled his needs or not. Drew tossed and turned violently, laying on one side of his bed only to move to the next to try to find peace in this vengeful night.

"_Ugh, I can't sleep!"_ Drew said in his head, frustrated. Finally, he threw off the covers and blankets, changed into his regular outfit, and walked outside his room. Down the hall he went, seeing the occasional two-man patrol or servant. He passed a room with a closed door, when he heard a few whispers.

"Did you see what happened earlier today?" One man said.

"Yeah, it was Octavio!" A woman, maybe a maid, replied.

"I thought he would never return! Remember the King before ours, when they exiled the Cuttlefish family, they said they didn't need them!" Another man complained.

"Yeah. But the King already said that he has the situation handled, and that Octavio might be the way to restore peace!" The woman argued.

"I don't know, what if Octavio destroys us anyways? What if when he attacks, our defenses are useless?" The first man asked.

"I mean, I'm sure our defenses have improved over the years! Octavio might not even have a chance against us!"

"Maybe…" The woman added. Drew could hear the whole conversation outside, and it only confirmed his suspicions. People weren't really confident in his father's decision either, but they seem to be comforted by his father's words.

"_I, for one, cannot be comforted, not for something like this. Something needs to be done, and now."_ Drew thought. He ran down the hall, his destination clear. Drew turned a corner and entered a large study, where he found his father sitting near a fireplace.

"Father."

"Ah, Son! I was going to ask for you tomorrow, but since you are awake, I might as well talk to you now. Here, have a seat." The King said, gesturing to the chair in front of him. Drew sat down, however he didn't seem as pleased as his father did.

"What did you want?"

"You know your...well, that girl. The one you always hang around?"

"She has a name."

"Yes, I think you call her...Orange, right? Because of her orange tentacles? Such a cute name. But alas, there's something I need to tell you."

"Yes father?"

"She is a member of the Cuttlefish family. When we sent them away, I was ordered to hunt them, and take any of the children they had, so we could prevent them from retaliating against the exile rule. We even had their precious sword. Unfortunately for me, Orange was the only one we were able to catch. Once we did, well...she adjusted well to our society."

"So...that's why she's an orphan…" Drew muttered.

"Yes. But now, it's time someone else hunts her, but for a different reason. That someone, will be you Andrew."

"What? Why me? I thought she perished."

"Because you know her. You know where she could be hiding. Plus, I highly doubt she actually died, and I'm sure you doubt it too. You will hunt her because it is for the good of this kingdom. I need to protect our people, and if I don't find her and that sword, then Octavio will destroy us all." The King explained. Drew thought about it. Could it be, could Reika still be alive? He was curious, and he wanted to know.

"I'll do it. For the kingdom."

"Thank you, my boy. Your seahorse is ready, so you may leave if you want, but I suggest resting first."

"I think I'll leave now, thank you."

"No, thank you Andrew. Thank you for understanding." The King told him, and Drew left the study quietly.

* * *

**Meanwhile…**

"So...am I living here for the rest of my life?" Reika asked. She looked around her room, which contained a small nightstand beside a bunk bed. One bunk, the bottom one, was obviously Marie's, as there was a small cloth sign hanging from the edge. The top bunk also had a cloth sign, but with Reika's name on it. The room was small and didn't have much stuff, but it felt nice and cozy and welcoming to Reika.

"Sure, if you want. But…" Marie replied.

"But what?"

"*sigh*, want me to tell you?" Marie asked, and Reika nodded.

"So, you're going to be the one to kill Octavio. There, I said it."

"What!? Me!? A-are you insane!?"

"No, I'm not, and don't use my head-conversations with you as 'proof'. I'm telling you what you probably already figured out, okay?"

"A-alright...but how do I...how am I ever supposed to fight him? I mean, I listened to that whole story your Gramps was telling me and well...it just doesn't sound like a very 'me' thing for, well me." Reika said. She sat down on the floor where a few stuffed animals and pillows were.

"Look, I know it sounds like an impossible task, but I have faith in you. I mean, you survived for all these years! Gramps thought you died, my parents thought they killed you! Besides, even the sword seemed to have chosen you. If you could survive all these years, from all those terrible things from our past, then I have faith you can get past this."

"Alright...it's just hard to wrap my head around all this...so much new information coming so fast, it's just so weird and unnatural."

"I know it's a lot to take in, but you have to take it all in sooner than later, because we really don't have much time. And knowing your King, he's gonna screw us all over and Octavio will destroy us if nothing is done. It's now or never." Marie explained. She sat down beside Reika, handing her a pair of pajamas. The pajamas had small green squids on them, and the whole thing was in a lighter shade of green. Reika took them eagerly, and started to put them on over her bra and shorts.

"So...about where I came from. I mean, for all my life I've been told that my parents abandoned me, and that the King just felt like I needed help from him personally. In a way, he kind of raised me my whole life. I always lived in a small house right next to his castle, and I got full permission to go in and out of the castle as I please. It was pretty cool, and he seemed like a really nice guy."

"Well, he's a bastard, an unforgivable bastard. You might recognize him as a benevolent man, but I only see him as the same man that lead those horrible hunts…"

"Hunts?" Reika asked, tilting her head in confusion.

"Yes. We were exiled, if you haven't heard or figured out by now."

"Yeah, a fellow guard told me a while ago. Kind of made me sad."

"Hmph, yeah, makes me sad too. Anyways, when we were exiled, the current King and Queen decided that they didn't want our family line to continue, so they began to hunt us, children first. We fled the town we lived in and were hiding out in an old barn when they came, and Mom tried to get you, but the leader of the group, he…" Tears were forming at the corners of her eyes, but she quickly wiped them away.

"Well, after he was done dealing with her, he just took you. Then that bastard leader became your King, and well...you know the rest from there."

"Wait, so he killed my Mom?"

"No, thankfully no. I had learned some magic at the time, and I managed to heal her wounds enough until my other family members came to save us. But nothing could heal her sorrow when she learned they took you. And now you're back home, back with your family." Marie said.

"So all this time, I was...I was just mad at my parents for abandoning me, when really, I was taken away…"

"I know, it must feel so weird thinking about it, but…"

"But I feel happy. This makes me happy, to know I'm with my real family."

"Heh, I thought you felt that way" Marie said "Here, let's go to bed, it's getting late." Reika nodded, and they climbed into their bunks. Reika stared at the ceiling while Marie blew out the candle in the lantern, which was partly illuminating the room from the nightstand.

"Hey Marie?"

"Hm?"

"I feel like I heard your names before. You and Callie."

"Oh, I think you have. Callie and I, we go by different last names and do some work in Inkopolis. After all, we do need some form of income, and living out here in the middle of nowhere doesn't seem too viable at all."

"Oh, really? What do you do?"

"Sing. We sing around the town square, and get paid to do it. It started at a small contest in a restaurant that Callie and I were at, and then we just sort of did it more and more often. We've attracted quite the following actually. You probably heard of us before at some point."

"Wait, I did! I watched you guys a few years ago, when I was roaming the city. So, I'm related to two Inklings that happen to be both famous and rebels in the King's eyes...the more you know, I guess."

"Well yeah, by now everyone's heard our names. We've become so well known that every time Callie and I sneak out to roam around Inkopolis or go anywhere, we refer to each other by numbers. I'm 'Two', Callie is 'One', for example."

"Oh, that's cool. Hey, can I do that? Might help me right about now, you know, being hunted right now by literally everyone..." Reika asked. She loved the idea, and thought it might help her bond with her long lost family members.

"Sure, I don't see why not." Marie agreed.

"Hmm...how about Three?"

"Sounds good, 'Three'." Marie said in approval, making Reika giggle a bit.

"Well, time to get some shut eye, for real this time. You can ask more questions tomorrow."

"Alright. Good night." Reika said.

"Good night."

* * *

**So that's it for this chapter. Yeah, the story behind the Inkhander was something I made up a while ago, and actually the idea for the sword itself was an idea I made up while making random weapons for a game (though I can't remember what the game was). Anyways, thanks for reading and be sure to leave a review!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Unlikely Allies**

**Sorry for the long wait for this chapter, I've been kind of busy recently with summer vacation and other things. But besides that point, at least the story has been updated (finally). I don't really have a specific upload schedule for any of my stories, so expect many different waits between chapters. Anyways, hopefully you enjoy!**

* * *

The bar was outside Inkopolis city, located in a village in the more rural area that was outside Inkopolis and any other more urban city. The inside was well lit, with a few shady corners where outlaws and bandits would sit, probably to discuss plans of robbery or where to hide stolen loot. At the bar, the bartender, a jellyfish, stood wiping the counter and any glasses he needed to, occasionally striking conversation with the travelers or usual visitors that came in. As of right now, the bar wasn't crowded, but there were still some occupants. There was the bartender of course, a few Inkling men that were sitting at the bar and talking among themselves, a female Inkling in a cloak, her face buried in her arms. Another individual, a female, was wearing a cloak as well, taking small sips of her drink. She was in the back, in a darker corner of the bar in an attempt not to attract attention. The men up front were talking loudly, and both could hear their conversation.

"So, how's life on the farm these days?" One Inkling man asked another. This one was skinny and tall, wearing a white shirt with the sleeves torn off with a jacket worn over. He also had green tentacles styled in a ponytail. Despite being skinny, he was pretty muscular, and the sleeveless shirt helped people display his strong biceps. All the men there weren't that young, and all three of them looked middle-aged or close to it.

"Eh, it's been fine. My wife's been fussing about me being a lazy bum, and I keep telling her to shut up! She doesn't know any better, if anything she's the dumbest girl I've ever seen this side of the country." This Inkling was more stockier than the other one. He had large muscles, and wore a light blue short-sleeve shirt that was buttoned down. He had a small moustache, and had short nearly-bald head of yellow hair, with no visible tentacles on it.

"Pfft, you got that right. She can't even take care of the coddamn chickens right." The third man agreed. He was shorter than the tallest man there, but taller than the stocky man. He had some muscle, but less than the taller Inkling. He wore a simple reddish-tan tunic, and he had short, tiny blue tentacles on his head.

"That's right Jim, the coddamn chickens."

"Hey, have any of you heard about the attacks?" The blue Inkling, Jim, asked.

"Now now, I think everyone's heard the news by now. Ever since Octavio himself showed up in the skies above Inkopolis, all I hear is people chatting about it nonstop." The stocky Inkling replied.

"Heh, I hear the King is trying to make peace with Octavio. Also heard that his methods are working, and soon the attacks will stop." The bartender commented, settling near the men.

"So what? Is that supposed to make us forget about the attacks? The villages they already raided, killing tons of people. I think the Octarians should just stay where they are, why are we giving them land?"

"Um...to make them agree with our peace treaties?" The tall Inkling asked.

"Octarians are all scum. They're worthless trash. This peace agreement isn't with them, it's just with Octavio and his army. The rest of the Octarian scum that live in their poor, secluded areas all got what they deserve. All they do is try to live off our land, the land we rightfully own! Now that Octavio gets some land, there will be no doubt that those stupid Octarians are going to inhabit those lands unfairly. And guess what Octavio is going to do about it?" The stocky Inkling asked them all, and they just shrugged, not knowing how to answer. By now, the girl in the back was listening, while the one resting her head in her arms remained in the same position. The girl in the back moved towards the dark uncomfortably as she continued to listen in, the men not really trying that hard to be silent, if at all.

"He's going to do nothing. He's just going to let them be on our land, and then those stupid Octarians are going to rub it into our faces. It's bullshit I tell you."

"Yeah, that sounds unfair. They're mooching off the agreement the King is making with Octavio and only him." The tall Inkling commented.

"Exactly. And who's going to suffer?"

"We are?" The bartender questioned.

"That's damn right we are. We will be driven off our rightful land and homes, and the Octarians are just going to take it, hog it, and Octavio and the King won't do anything because they sympathise with them." The others nodded in agreement as they listened to stocky Inkling rant. By now, the girl in the back corner was closing her eyes, trying her best to ignore them and pretend they weren't there. However, this didn't work, and she could still hear them, however annoying it was.

"Isn't Octavio the king of the Octarians?" The bartender asked.

"Not anymore, I think they just say that because he gets them under his control with his dark magic, Boris" Jim replied to the stocky Inkling, Boris.

"Yeah, and when he takes our land, he's going to make sure the Octarians get it. They're all worthless scum. The only ones who have more use are those Octolings." Boris said, while the others nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, especially the girls. Damn, they are might fine beauties. If I can get my hands on one for one night…" The tall one said, thinking in his head about what he was talking about.

"Yeah, you're right. I'd take one into the nearby inn to have fun anytime. But other than that, they don't worth much." Jim added.

"Yeah. Maybe once the treaty is in, we can go on in, get one and f-" Boris was interrupted by the girl in the back, who was now standing there, talking to the bartender. She was holding some Cash in her hand, which were a few gold coins with a curved arrow design, the local currency of Mollusca.

"Excuse me, I was wondering if this is enough to pay you. I'll be leaving now." The girl said to the bartender. He just nodded, extending his tentacles to grab the Cash from her hands. The men just stared at her, waiting for their small talk to be over so they can continue their conversation. She turned to walk towards the door, but tripped over her feet. Luckily, she caught herself, but her hood fell off, revealing her head. Shocked, she quickly pulled the hood back up, but it was too late.

"Hey wait a second...the suction cups, they were on the outside of the tentacles. You aren't an Inkling…" Boris said, and he stood up and grabbed the girl before she could run. He forcefully pulled on the hood, and although she struggled against his grip, he easily just tore it off the rest of the cloak to reveal that the girl's head and face.

"You're an Octoling!" The man exclaimed. The girl was walking backwards towards the exit, but was blocked by the taller Inkling, who had his arms crossed. By then, she saw all three Inklings surrounding her, anger visible on their faces. The bartender hid behind the counter, peering over the top.

"You've got a lot of nerve coming to an Inkling village, little girl." Boris muttered.

"Pl-please, I mean no harm, I'm just passing through, I'll be out and you'll never see me again, I promise!" The girl defended. She tried to push past them, but the Inklings were determined to keep her there.

"Yeah, passing through so that when your stupid friends come and raid the village, you won't get hurt. How convenient."

"N-no, it's not that way at all! I'm not associated with any harmful evil, I just merely wanted to travel!"

"It doesn't matter what you say, you aren't going anywhere." The tall Inkling said, and he raised his fist to hit her when Jim stopped him, holding his hands out to block the strike.

"Wait wait wait! Weren't we talking about spending a night with one of these girls? Let's just do it now…"

"Here? What about that one?" The tall man pointed out, pointing to the girl who seemed like she was sleeping. The other two just shrugged, not too worried.

"Meh, she's out cold. Maybe we can have some fun with her later, but for now, I'm liking the sound of this idea…" Boris said ominously. He crept up towards the Octoling girl, who had by now already put two and two together and knew what they were up to. Unfortunately, she was still surrounded and couldn't escape.

"H-hey, let go of me! H-help! Help me, someb-ack!" The Octoling shouted, before one of the men gagged her with his hand, covering her mouth. She tried to scream, but it was too quiet and no one else could hear them.

"Hehe, nothing like some Octo booty to make my anger go away!" Boris said with a mischievous smile. That's when something flew through the air and smashed into the side of his head. It was an empty glass, and when the Inkling man looked to where the glass had been thrown, he saw the girl who seemed asleep, now standing there with a confident smirk. She wore a sleeveless red jacket, with a long black cape on top of it. The edges of the cape were slightly worn out and torn, and it had a faded number "3" on the back. She wore two leather belts on her waist, one containing small sleeves that concealed smaller knives while the other a short sword in a sheath.

"You know, there's other places you guys can do that, but not here."

"Mind your own business, this Octoling is our problem, not yours." Boris said.

"Oh, she wasn't my problem. You are." The Inkling girl retorted. This made Boris angry, and he dropped the Octoling before storming up to the Inkling standing there.

"What's a beautiful young damsel doing here? If you don't want your face mashed, I suggest you leave."

"You wouldn't hit an Inkling gi-" The girl felt his fist whack her across the jaw, and she stumbled backwards, a bit surprised. She wiped off the area with her arm, before staring at them.

"Wow, you really went there. Okay then...if it's a fight you want, it's a fight you get."

"Oh cod please no, not in my bar…" The jellyfish bartender said, ducking behind the bar once again. Boris swung his fist at the girl again, who moved her body back to avoid it, before she grabbed his wrist and twisted his arm behind his back. The man cried in pain as his friends watched, still holding onto the Octoling girl

"Ack-don't you idiots just stand there! H-help me out!" Boris ordered.

"Do we?" The tall Inkling asked, and Jim just nodded. They dropped the Octoling to the ground with a thud, and rushed over to join the fight. The Inkling girl just dropped Boris to the ground face first before meeting Jim, who started to swing his fists repeatedly at her. She ducked to avoid the first two swings, but Jim brought his knee upwards and kneed the girl in the chest. She held her chest with one hand, and tried to stand up, but she found herself being uppercutted by Jim. The Inkling girl wiped away some ink seeping from the corner of her mouth, and looked up to see Jim with both of his fists raised high in the air, ready to bring them down on her.

"Uh oh." The girl muttered, and she rolled out of the way, allowing him to miss and hit the hard wood floor instead. The girl then pulled out a large sword from her back, glaring at her attackers. The sword had a tentacle wrapped around it, and when the girl swung the sword forward, the tentacle quickly unraveled itself from the blade and shot forward, extending and wrapping itself around Jim instead. Jim could only watch in shock as he was thrown across the room, slamming into the side of a wall. The tall Inkling rushed over, shouting angrily as he just swung his fists around aimlessly. The girl tried to get the tentacle to wrap around his leg, but this Inkling was more aware of her new trick and grabbed the tentacle, before pulling it so that the sword fell out of her grasp. Once out of her grasp, the tentacle wrapped itself around the blade in quick succession and the stocky Boris caught it, smiling to himself while his taller friend body slammed the girl.

"Well well well, if it isn't the thief that the King's been looking for. Rumor has it olyou were supposed to be dead. Imagine how much money I'll get just for turning you in!"

"Ugh...give that back." The girl ordered, trying to reach for him, but the tall Inkling grabbed her arm and slammed it onto the floor, watching as she yelped in pain.

"Or what? You should've kept quiet, little lady, maybe then you wouldn't be in this mess." Boris taunted. Jim rejoined the rest of his friends, and all three men had left the Octoling by herself, who had been sitting on the floor watching the whole fight take place. She was about to stand up and leave without them noticing, but that's when the girl called her out.

"Hey, Octoling! You can use magic, yes?"

"Hm?" The Octoling asked nervously.

"Aren't Octolings good at magic?" The Inkling asked, only for the tall Inkling guy to bite her one of her long tentacles. She squinted, trying not to shout from the pain shooting up to her head.

"Y-yes, I can use magic."

"Now would be a good time to use it!" The girl said, and the Octoling stood there, contemplating whether to help her or to run. Finally she just closed her eyes and moved her hands, before extending them out in front of her. Magenta ink shot from her fingertips, and blasted the tall Inkling off the girl, while Jim and Boris got out of the way. The girl used this distraction to punch Boris across the face several times and pulled the sword from his grasp. Jim came behind her and put his arms around her neck, trying to choke her out. Before he could begin to try though, he felt a heavy object smash into the back of his head, and Jim fell backwards, unconscious. Behind her, the Inkling girl saw the Octoling holding the remains of a chair, the broken wooden legs in her hands.

"Thanks."

"Y-you're welcome." The Octoling replied shyly. Boris stood back up weakly, trying one more time to attack the two, but the Inkling girl punched him one more time, sending him to the ground and out cold. She rubbed her hand, which hurt a bit from the punch, before walking over to the bar counter. There, she could see the terrified jellyfish hiding there. He peeked up to see her, and was shaking uncontrollably.

"Pl-please don't hurt me…"

"I was never here, got that?" The Inkling girl told him. She looked back to see the Octoling poking at the unconscious men curiously "And neither was she. None of us were here, and those three guys just beat each other up, understand?"

"Y-yes, of course. Just don't hurt me." The jellyfish nodded quickly, and the Inkling girl called the Octoling over to follow her out of the bar. When they were gone, the jellyfish just sighed in relief and went to work cleaning the mess created from the small fight.

* * *

It was the middle of the night, and the Inkling and Octoling traversed through the forest, getting through the dense brush. The Octoling was holding a small torch, the flame being used as a light source to guide them through the rough thickets and shrubbery. The Inkling girl was carrying a short sword in her right hand, hacking away at some branches that were in their way. Once she cut the branches, she just picked them up or catch them in mid-air before carrying the branches with her.

"So, what's an Octoling like you doing out here, especially right now?" The Inkling asked, leaping over a rock. The Octoling followed close behind, taking a more careful approach and cautiously climbing over it.

"I was just traveling."

"There's got to be more than that. Octarians don't just 'travel' here, especially when they know they aren't welcomed." The Inkling girl replied. She hacked away at another branch and caught it, adding to the bundle that she carried underneath her armpit.

"Well I...I don't want to say." The Octoling replied nervously. She looked to her left and right, shining the torch around her surroundings.

"Hey, there's nothing to worry about, no one's coming to get you. By the time those guys rally up a hunt for you, you'll be long gone." The Inkling said, but the Octoling didn't respond. Finally, they reached the end of the woods. In the distance, they could see a large town, with a few torches lit at the towers that were scattered among the walls that fortified the whole place. A few guards patrolled outside the walls, walking in organized patterns.

"Well, it's a bit late to go in that town, not to mention we'll probably get unwanted attention. Here, let's go..." The Inkling said, before turning to look behind her. The Octoling tilted her head to the side slightly, giving the girl a look of confusion. Finally, the Inkling found a small area they could use for a campfire to stay for the night. "There!" She said, pointing to the area. The Octoling looked over and followed the girl to the area, standing beside her with the torch. The Inkling rushed over to the area, kneeling down and setting up the sticks and branches she collected to make a fire.

"Alright, hand me the torch."

"O-okay." The Octoling replied, handing the torch to the Inkling, who promptly used it to light the wood on fire. She blew on the small flames that started to form, and in a few seconds they had a decent sized fire starting. The Inkling sat on the ground beside the fire, while the Octoling situated herself across from her, all the while trying to avoid eye contact. The two just sat and watched the fire burn, with the Inkling occasionally putting a few branches into the flames to keep it alive. She poked at the campfire with a branch, before taking it out and blowing the tip, which was lit on fire. Finally, after some silence the Octoling spoke.

"Get it over with." The Octoling stood up, her hands now fists. Her tentacles curled up, and she had a serious expression on her face.

"Hm?" The Inkling looked up, making eye contact with her. The Inkling was slightly confused at the Octoling's tone and slight burst of bravery.

"I saw your sword. I know what it is, and what it's capable of. Just splat me and get it over with."

"What? Oh this? No, you've got the wrong idea-" The Inkling argued, but she got cut off.

"If you want to kill me, just do it already. Please stop toying with me, I...it's stressing me out." The Octoling explained.

"Look, I'm not going to hurt you, I promise. I know this sword is great for splatting Octarians, but my intention is not to hurt you, okay?" The Inkling said in a calm voice. The Octoling still didn't seem convinced.

"Y-you promise?" The Octoling asked after some silence.

"I promise." The Inkling affirmed. The Octoling sat back down, across from the Inkling like before. She seemed a bit less tense than a few seconds before, but the Inkling girl could still see that she was on high alert. The Inkling girl wanted to lessen tensions and reduce any fears this Octoling had.

"Oh, I completely forgot to introduce myself! My name's Reika, but you can call me Three." The Inkling said in a cheerful tone, pointing to herself.

"Why 'Three'?" The Octoling asked, confused at the nickname.

"Oh, well a few of my relatives had nicknames based off numbers, so I decided to join in and call myself Three. Also, it avoids the soldiers from knowing my real name, since well, I'm technically labeled as a 'criminal'." Reika said, using her fingers to make quotation marks.

"H-how come you are a criminal? Aren't you supposed to be the hero that the Inklings talk about?" The Octoling asked.

"Well, you see, my Gramps got exiled after he defeated Octavio. Don't entirely know why, but I just know we've been exiled and unwanted since. I actually didn't know I was a Cuttlefish until my Gramps told me, which wasn't until after I got chased and nearly killed for stealing the Inkhander because my sister told me to in my head." The Inkling explained happily, with her eyes closed. She opened them to see the Octoling scooted a bit further from her.

"Okay, maybe that wasn't the best way to explain it, but that's how it happened. Yes, it makes me sound insane."

"Are you?" The Octoling asked. Her comment caught Reika by surprise, who didn't expect the shy Octoling to say something along the lines of that.

"Excuse me, I'll have you know that I don't have voices in my head all the time. That was only because of some magic that I had no say in." Reika said, sounding slightly offended by the question. This made the Octoling giggle, which also surprised the Inkling.

"How did you know I could do magic?"

"I didn't. I just asked and hoped for the best." Reika sheepishly admitted.

"So you heard about us Octarians being good at magic?"

"Yeah, heard it from my Gramps. Are you any good at it?"

"I don't know. I can't really remember much spells. The one I used over at the bar was very simple."

"Okay, so I'll take it you're good at magic." Reika said, and the Octoling just shrugged.

"Oh carp I forgot to ask! What's your name?"

"Oh...I...I don't know." The Octoling said in a sad tone. She seemed slightly embarrassed to admit the fact.

"Really? Why don't you remember?" Reika asked, surprised at her answer.

"Well, I just remember running from people, and then there was a waterfall...I jumped, and I don't know. I assume I used some spells to make sure I didn't die, but I remember feeling a lot of pain in my head, then going to sleep."

"You blacked out. I guess the spells were only enough to make sure you didn't get killed from the fall, but weren't enough to protect from head trauma." Reika explained. The Octoling just shrugged and nodded, not too sure of what really happened. However, she did think what Reika was saying made sense and probably happened to her.

"I don't know what to call myself. People usually don't ask me my name because I try to hide."

"Because you're an Octoling and Octolings aren't welcome here, I know. Here, how about we give you a temporary name!"

"Temporary?"

"You know, until we find out your real name. How does 'Eight' sound?" Reika asked.

"Okay." The Octoling said, nodding.

"Are you just saying that because I make you nervous or do you like it?" Reika questioned.

"I like it. Thank you." The Octoling, now Eight, replied. Reika stretched out her arms and let out a big yawn.

"Okay, I'm tired. See you in the morning."

"Okay." Eight replied. Eight curled up into a ball, sleeping on the ground while Reika leaned against a nearby tree. Before she shut her eyes, she looked at the Octoling who was on the other side of the campfire.

"_Heh, I made an Octoling friend. Wait till Callie and Marie hear about this."_ Reika thought, before she closed her eyes and slowly drifted off to sleep.

* * *

When Reika woke up, the sun was just beginning to rise up. It was still a bit dark, but bright sunlight was shining from the horizon, shining past the leaves of the trees and into Reika's face, blinding her in her already groggy state. She got up from her spot on the tree and stretched her limbs and back, not feeling as comfortable as she would have had she slept on a bed.

"Ugh, remind me to sleep at an inn, or somewhere that isn't against a tree." Reika said aloud to herself. She looked over to where Eight was sleeping to find the Octoling had disappeared. The campfire had been extinguished by now, with all the branches fueling the fire now burnt up and turned into a small pile of ash. Reika was cautious, and felt around her back. The Inkhander was still attached to her back, thankfully, but Eight's disappearance worried her. She looked around the area, past trees and bushes trying to find the Octoling.

"_Where is she? Did she run away?"_ Reika thought to herself.

"Eiiiiiiight! Eight, where are you?" Reika called out, like if she were calling out to an animal. She finally found the Octoling laying on a tree branch, peacefully watching a bird feed its babies at their nest. Eight rested her head on her arms and watched closely, smiling at the small baby birds opening their mouths and chirping constantly, begging for food. Finally, she noticed Reika standing there, watching her.

"Oh, good morning." Eight said quietly. The mother bird quickly finished feeding the babies before she flew off. Eight watched the bird fly away, before she carefully turned into an octopus and slipped down to the ground. She reformed at the ground right in front of Reika, nervously avoiding eye contact.

"So, you were watching nature?"

"Yes...you were still asleep and I just wanted to walk around a bit. Sorry if I worried you."

"No, it's fine. I mean, I guess I kind of make you nervous. I'm not scary to you, right?"

"Well, you kind of scare me a bit, but that might be because us Octarians are your enemy, as far as I could see. But you seem nice to me, so…"

"Hey, as long as you aren't trying to splat me, I'm not going to hurt you." Reika said. Eight nodded in agreement, and the two quickly headed off toward the town they saw the night before. There were fewer guards than the night before, but the two were still cautious, as both of them had dangerous consequences if their identities were discovered.

"Hey Eight, put your hood on, and cover your tentacles as best as you can." Reika whispered as they neared the gate.

"Okay." Eight replied.

"Oh yeah, is there a way you can conceal the Inkhander so they don't see it?"

"I'm not sure, the Inkhander is very resistant to Octarian magic, so probably not, even if I knew what spell to use."

"Carp. If I can't hide this thing, then I'll be caught for sure and we will both suffer the consequences." Reika explained. She quickly surveyed the area to look for another way in, but no such entrance was available. There was only the gate in front of them, but that wasn't a good option to use.

"I can make a magical door that will allow us to go past the walls." Eight commented.

"Oh, that's actually pretty useful. Okay, let's do that." Reika said. The two quietly sneaked past the guards, who were conveniently looking the other direction. They arrived at a corner of the wall where it met a tower, and so Eight started working her magic.

"Make a wall in this door." Eight chanted quietly. A small section of the wall was outlined in pink in the form of a rectangle. The rectangle was then completely colored pink before reverting back to its original stone gray color, and the section of the wall opened like a door, allowing the two to pass.

"Hey, that's pretty useful." Reika commented. Eight walked in last, closing the door behind her. The instant the magical door closed, the door reverted back to just being a regular wall.

"Yes, I guess so." Eight replied. The two walked into town, passing through the streets. The town streets weren't too crowded, but there were still some people walking by. Finally, they reached the town square area, which was bustling with more people. Vendors surrounded the area, calling out the many items on sale, and townspeople occasionally went up to their small shacks to purchase items. Reika and Eight walked around, looking at every vendor's stand. Reika bought a cape for herself at one stand, and she quickly managed to hide the Inkhander underneath it so nobody can see it, at least not easily. She had the tentacle wrapped around her waist, and the sword had created a layer of green ink to act as a makeshift sheath. The cape helped to hide the tentacle, as well as most of the sword itself. They continued on from there until they stopped at a stand selling some street food, where the two watched as a large sentient shrimp was frying something. He noticed them standing there, and walked over to greet his potential customers.

"Hello there, how may I help you?" He asked. The shrimp had ten limbs, two of them being large claws, two more acting as his legs, and the rest were smaller legs across his body, each one with a shoe on it. He resembled a fried shrimp, and had big eyes with a purple hat.  
"Yeah, my friend and I were a bit hungry, so we were wondering if there was anything we could get for a quick bite."

"Sure thing. Have a seat on those stools, I'll get you my signature Seanwich. I can guarantee you'll love it."

"Sounds great, thanks." Reika replied, and both her and Eight sat down on the stools that were at the front. Eight watched carefully as he prepared the meal, seemingly amazed at his work while Reika looked behind her at the other shacks and stands. Everyone seemed to be having heavy conversations about recent events, and she easily heard the words "King", "Octavio", "Cuttlefish" and "Inkhander" from the people who walked past her. Luckily for her, the cape was working wonders and no one was the wiser. The food was done sooner than she thought, and the large shrimp came back holding two sandwiches.

"Food's all ready. Enjoy!"  
"Thank you, sir." Reika replied. Both girls took a bite from their Seanwiches, and instantly fell in love with the food item. Reika loved the explosion of flavor in her mouth, and she eagerly took another bite, not even having finished the previous one. She looked over to see Eight was munching on her Seanwich much faster. Their reaction to the taste of the food amused the shrimp.

"Heh, like it?" The shrimp asked.

"Oh, this is great!" Reika replied.

"Well, I'm glad I'm serving a member of the Cuttlefish family." The shrimp said happily, which shocked the Inkling.

"Who, me? You must be mistaken, I'm not related to them at all." Reika said, doing her best to try to convince the shrimp he was wrong. She thought she sounded convincing enough, but the shrimp just chuckled lightheartedly.

"I know you're lying, I can see the Sword underneath your cape. It was a bit hard to notice the tentacle around your waist, at least until you had your arms above the tabletop." The shrimp replied, pointing to the Inkhander. Reika was shocked that he found out, and felt stupid for being so uncautious.

"Hey, don't be alarmed, your secret's safe with me, and your friend over here I'm assuming. I'm glad you made off with that thing anyway, no telling what evil Octavio has in store for all of us." The shrimp said. Reika breathed a sigh of relief hearing this.

"Thank you." Reika told him.

"No problem squiddo. The name's Sean, Crusty Sean if you want to be specific. And you are?" Crusty Sean extended his claw hand out towards Reika, who shook it.

"Reika Cuttlefish, although I also go by 'Three'."

"Vague nickname. Pretty useful for times like this, especially with the King and his soldiers on the lookout for you. They've been turning this whole town upside down looking for that sword. Finding you means they find the Sword." Crusty Sean pointed out.

"Well, I plan on making it as hard as possible for them." Reika said. They both suddenly heard a short burp, and looked over to see an embarrassed Eight covering her mouth. She had finished her Seanwich way faster than Reika, and the burp showed her satisfaction with the delicious treat.

"Looks to me like your friend is enjoying my Seanwich! Glad to see I have another fan." Crusty Sean said happily. Eight gave him a small smile back.

"Heh, funny thing is your fan is an Octoling." Reika mentioned. This surprised Eight, who suddenly froze up in her seat in fear. Meanwhile, her Inkling friend didn't seem too worried about what she said, much to Eight's confusion and annoyance.

"Three, why did you tell him?" Eight asked.

"Really? Well, it isn't often I see an Octoling here, ever actually. Nice to finally meet one in person." Crusty Sean said to Eight, who looked slightly confused. This shrimp was definitely weird, as he didn't seem mad or the least bit threatened that an Octoling was at his vendor stand.

"You don't hate me?"

"Hey, I have nothing against you unless you attack me. You're all cool with me." Crusty Sean said. Suddenly, they heard loud berating coming from the middle of the square. All three turned to look at a group of soldiers rough housing an Inkling man for information, with one soldier grabbing him by the collar of his tunic while another held up a colored portrait of Reika, displaying her with orange tentacle hair.

"_Good thing I changed my tentacles and clothes before I left the Cabin."_ Reika thought to herself as she watched the poor man get punched across the face from one of the soldiers. She looked over to Eight, who was pulling the hood a bit more over her head in an attempt to conceal herself more.

"They get more aggressive by the hour. I tell you, if only they would just let you deal with Octavio, then all the problems and tensions arising will be solved." Crusty Sean said. Hearing this added to the stress and weight on Reika's shoulders. She already knew she had to defeat Octavio, or else all Inklings have the risk of falling to mass genocide. She didn't even know how she was supposed to do it in the first place, all she knows is that so many people are depending on her to fulfill a task that she could hardly wrap her head around.

"Yikes. We better get going then, I don't think we should linger around here for long."

"Well, it was nice meeting you squiddo and octo. Good luck on your mission." Crusty Sean said, waving to the two as they walked away, sneaking away from the soldiers, who by now had dropped the man and moved on to their daily patrol.

* * *

"Three?"

"Hm?" Reika looked over to her Octoling friend, who was walking beside her. They walked through an alleyway between the many buildings in the town, which would help them hide from the soldiers patrolling the streets, or the many people out there who could possibly pose as a threat to them.

"Are you prepared to fight him?" Eight asked. Reika pretended to ignore the Octoling, attempting to walk away from Eight, but she persisted.

"You know who I'm talking about, right? I didn't remember his name until the kind shrimp mentioned it." Eight stated.

"I know what you're talking about, and I don't want to talk about it."

"But don't you think this is important? That shrimp man thought so." Eight muttered. Reika stopped in her tracks, which also made Eight stop walking. She then turned around quickly, slightly glaring at Eight.

"Look, I know it's important, it's probably the most important thing I should be focusing on right now. But that's the problem! I don't know why I, an Inkling who has almost never seen or experienced combat until a few days ago, was chosen to fight some powerful wizard that could annihilate every person in existence if he felt like it. I hate the attention I've been given, all the countless soldiers being sicced on me, tons of people depending on me to save their lives, it's stressing me out!"

"So...you aren't prepared?" Eight asked.

"Obviously not! I just wish I had a normal life just like literally everyone else in this world, with no crazy responsibility on my conscience! I have this sword everyone seems to think is so amazing, yet I hardly know what it does!" Reika yelled, and she turned back around and continued walking down the alley. Eight stood there for a few seconds, taking in the information she heard, before she looked up and noticed that Reika was almost out of sight.

"W-wait for me!" Eight exclaimed, and ran off toward her companion. She managed to catch up to her, and peeked over Reika's shoulder as the Inkling looked out the exit of the alleyway that lead back into the streets. They saw another patrol of soldiers walking by, questioning countless people and vendors. It was now in the middle of the day, and the streets were crowded with many Inklings, jellyfish, and other sea creatures. Reika motioned for Eight to follow, and when a large crowd walked by the exit, they slipped in, undetected by the patrol.

"Where are we going now?" Eight asked, doing her best to follow her new friend through the sea of people. Reika seemed to be going past the crowd with ease, much to Eight's surprise. Unlike Reika, Eight was struggling to squeeze through, and constantly felt the elbows and shoulders of the many passing townspeople shoving into her body.

"I don't know, maybe another town? Maybe find an inn so I can sleep on an actual bed…" Reika called back.

"Three, don't you think we should be more focused on how you are going to beat this Octavio guy?" Eight asked when she finally caught up to Reika, who stopped to look at a vendor stand.

"I will worry about that when I get to it. For now, I want to get off the streets and to somewhere I can stay for a bit." Reika replied to her friend, seemingly uninterested in answering her questions. She left the stand and walked right back into the crowd, with Eight doing her best to follow her. Eight knew the Inkling was simply trying her best to run away from the whole situation as much as possible, which slightly irritated the Octoling for some unknown reason. She wanted to express her thoughts about Reika's current actions, but she instead decided to wait for a later time instead of pestering her new and only friend so far. Reika looked around the buildings, reading large signs that told her what each building was. Eventually, she found a small inn, which she immediately entered. Eight quietly followed, hiding behind her friend as they walked towards the front desk. A small bell rang to announce their arrival.

"Hello there, young ladies! Are you looking to stay here for some time?" The receptionist said. He was sitting at the desk reading a small book when the two had walked in, and the instant he heard the bell's ring echo throughout the room, he immediately jumped up in excitement, which startled Eight as he gave a cheesy smile.

"Yeah, just for one night, maybe two." Reika told him. She pulled out a small pouch from her belt, opening it and handing over several shiny coins to the receptionist, who eyed the money carefully.

"Ah, thank you for the payment. Now, your rooms are right upstairs to your left." The receptionist said, dropping a key into Reika's hands.

"Thank you." Reika muttered before motioning the Octoling behind her to follow. They walked up the stairs, the wood below their feet creaking as they did so. Once they reached the second floor, Reika opened the door the first door to her left, revealing a small room. The room they were staying in was fairly sparse, with only one bed, with a small nightstand beside it. Right in front of the bed was a wooden desk and chair, with a mirror on the wall bordered by a shiny gold metal frame. The room also had a small dresser on the other side, and to the left of the bed was a single window with thin curtains.

"It's times like these when I wish I had more money on me." Reika muttered as she stepped in. Eight stepped inside after taking a bit more time to look around from the doorway. She walked over to the window, the sunlight attracting her like a moth attracted to light in the dark.

"This room is so small." Eight noted, fidgeting with the curtain as she watched the people on the streets, seeing the occasional patrol of soldiers march through.

"Yeah I know, but it's all I can afford without becoming poor and homeless." Reika replied, leaping onto the bed back first. She closed her eyes and leaned back on the pillows, which she admitted weren't the best pillows ever.

"But aren't you already homeless?" Eight asked. Reika opened one eye, glaring at the Octoling while she simply tilted her head and looked back at the Inkling with confusion.

"Shut up." Reika said, before turning in the bed to face away from her.

"_For someone who lost all their memories and doesn't really know much about themselves, she sure likes to point everything wrong with me." _Reika thought to herself. She closed her eyes once more, too tired and lazy to get underneath the covers of the bed. As Reika drifted off to sleep, Eight watched her from the window, pondering to herself about her friend's current decision to run away from her duty.

"_She can't run...she needs to help these people."_ Eight thought, before attempting to think of a solution. _"Perhaps...perhaps I can help her on this journey. She did say my magic was useful. And she didn't tell me to stop following her, so I guess that's another reason."_ Eight said, before she nodded and concluded that she would do her best to help Three fight this Octavio man the Shrimp man had warned them about. Eight turned back to watch the streets, but the instant she did, her eye caught something among the scene. Down below, some soldiers were targeting a small family of Inkling townspeople. Their conversation was somewhat muffled by the closed window, but Eight could still understand what they were saying.

"Sir please, we did nothing wrong!" A grown man said among the family, presumably the father.

"Thomas, we should go now, let the soldiers do their work." His wife said in a calm but frightened manner. One soldier then winded his arm back before back handing the woman to the ground, shocking her whole family while his fellow comrades watched, emotionless.

"I'm doing my job right now, wench." The Soldier spat. His decorative medals on his armor, as well as the fancy feather plume on his helmet indicated that he was a higher rank than the grunts who followed him. The husband by now had kneeled down to his partner's aid, while he looked up at the fierce warrior.

"Sir, that was unnecessary, she was only trying to help calm the situation."

"What is there to be calm about? We are busy out here hunting some fugitive who, unless we find, Octavio will begin to wreak havoc on this land once more. Why should I be calm when my job is even more stressful with those odds on my shoulders?" The soldier growled. The husband remained silent, still tending to his wife while the soldier continued their interrogation.

"So, let me repeat myself. I was walking by when I heard you talk to your wife about where the location of the fugitive Cuttlefish may be. Would you please relay that information to me?"

"You slapped my wife in front of my children. That is no way to handle a situation." The husband argued. This frustrated the soldier even more, who bared his teeth, resisting the urge to attack him. He looked at a few of his men and whispered something that Eight couldn't hear. She then saw that half of his men had left the scene, and the group waited there silently. All of this perplexed the Octoling, who just continued to watch. Suddenly, she heard a large announcement, something about a king and soldiers patrolling the area. She would have paid more attention, but Eight's eyes were soon pulled back to the family and the rest of the soldiers as they started dragging the Inklings to a wide alleyway.

"I can't bear seeing such a nice looking family being hurt, not by those monsters...I hope Three doesn't mind…" Eight said, taking one look at the passed out girl before she dashed out of the room.

"You're going to tell me everything you know, or else we start shrinking your already small family." The lead soldier ordered.

"Please, I don't know much, just a story I heard from a village very close by." The father said.

"What's the story then?"

"S-some bar fight occurred, and the men there didn't really remember much other than thinking they saw her, the Cuttlefish."

"Interesting…"

"Daddy, can we go now?" One of the two children there asked. There was a boy and a girl, not even fully developed yet, hiding behind their mother's arm.

"No, the soldiers aren't done asking us questions, okay? We will be done soon buddy." The father said reassuringly, but the son still looked terrified. The lead soldier on the other hand, had a nasty grin on his face as an idea dawned on him.

"I heard all I wanted."

"Oh, so we can leave now?" The father asked, only to get an uppercut to the jaw, sending him toppling to the pavement. The children and mother ran to his aid, but were suddenly grabbed by the other soldiers

"You know, being in this town looking for our special criminal has not only been stressful, turns out it's pretty boring as well. But you know what would make me feel better? Seeing how well you and your family here can fight us…" The lead soldier said ominously.

"What about the girls?"

"The wife you can do whatever. The younger one...eh, if you're into that. Personally though…" the lead soldier told one of his men, who just ogled both females man disgusting manner, while his leader cracked his knuckles. "-I prefer a good old fashioned fist fight." The lead soldier grinned menacingly. He slowly walked up to the father, grabbing him by the collar and forcing him to stand upright.

"Alright big boy, show me what you got." The soldier. The father swung with his right, but his more experienced opponent simply dodged the strike before bashing his knuckles across the poor family man's face. He toppled right back down like he had several minutes ago, his opponent now raising his foot to stomp on him. Suddenly, the lead soldier cried out in pain as a sudden explosion of magenta ink appeared on his back, knocking him across the alleyway. The family and the rest of the soldiers looked towards the direction of the explosion to see a young Octoling standing there, positioned in a stance that was the aftermath of performing a spell.

"Leave them be, they've done nothing to deserve such horrible treatment such as this, especially from disgusting soldiers such as you. Your King would be greatly disappointed." The Octoling ordered, her speech with some hint of Octarian accent mixed in. The rest of the grunts looked at each other, all of them sharing the exact same thought. None of them have ever fought an Octoling before, and most of the King's current army has never encountered one in their work. A moment like this was not to be wasted, in their minds. They all lunged at the Octoling, who's eyes widened at the sight of several beefy warriors charging at her. She managed to get out of the way of one soldier before splatting him with a powerful ball of ink, while also ducking moments before a sword swung horizontally above where her head was. The Octoling kicked the sword wielder's shin, but it was quite clear she wasn't very strong physically, as her kick barely hurt her adversary. If anything, it only made him more confident, knowing his opponent wasn't as strong as she looked. He glared down at the Octoling before embedding his foot into her chest, knocking her over and making her roll into a pile of crates. The wooden boxes smashed open upon impact, with many fruits popping out and rolling down the pavement. Some fruit had been crushed by the Octoling's back, soaking her clothes in sweet-smelling pulp and sticky juice. The soldier watched as she tried to recover, and used this opportunity to charge at her with his blade. Before the sword wielding soldier could do anything more, the Octoling made a thin ink barrier to shield herself. He slashed down diagonally, destroying the barrier, only for another one to replace it almost instantly. The Octoling could see that the soldier was plowing through her defenses with ease as she tried to get up. Using what was around her body, she quickly chanted a spell, levitating the undamaged fruit and throwing it towards the soldier. He had already cut the last barrier when he noticed the fruit flying towards his face, and while he managed to cut down three, he was nailed on the forehead by a large melon, which made a satisfying crack upon impact. The only remaining grunt pulled out a sword as well, the blade enveloping in blue ink. The Octoling concentrated on her foe, summoning balls of ink to her palms, throwing them at her opponent. This one was a bit more durable than his comrades, taking the blows without even slowing down. Finally, she threw one last ink projectile, which flew right past the soldier's head. His expression was of shock, most likely due to his realization of how close the ink was to nailing him in the face, but his he soon smiled as he realized the Octoling's mistake. He lunged at her, and although she tried to make another barrier, he simply batted the ink away, resting his foot on top of her chest. The weight of his body was now all focused onto his foot, holding the Octoling down so she couldn't escape, no matter how often she attempted to throw him off her.

"You missed." The soldier taunted. The grin on his face disgusted Eight, seeing how mad and violent he was, how eager the man was to take a life.

"Are you sure, soldier?" The Octoling questioned. This confused him, as he didn't know how to answer the question. But what his answer would have been didn't matter, because soon enough the projectile that missed slammed onto his back, a medium sized explosion erupting and splatting him, his blue ink splashing all over her. The Octoling stood up, wiping the ink off her face and clothes before walking over towards the family.

"You're safe now. Get out of here before more trouble-" The Octoling was interrupted by something smashing the back of her head. She fell over, unconscious, while the lead soldier from before laughed in victory. He then eyed the family, who just stood there horrified at the sight of their savior being knocked down.

"Leave, I'm no longer interested in you. This one however...I can totally get used to this." He muttered breathlessly. Not bothering to question him, the father grabbed his wife and children, running out of the alleyway as fast as they could. The soldier watched them leave, satisfied with his work done so far. Eyeing the Octoling like she was a large sum of Cash, he grabbed her arms, tying her wrists together before dragging the Octoling with him. He gently kicked his last remained trooper, who woke up and just looked at him in confusion.

"Get up you worthless moron, I've got the Octoling. Let's bring this to the town square and do something entertaining for a while."

"Oh, the King and the people will love this find." his fellow soldier added, and they both slowly marched as they dragged the Octoling across the filthy streets.

**Octavio's Castle Grounds…**

"Lord Octavio, your Elites are here upon your request. The respawn pads were very effective in bringing them back." A male Octoling said. He was different from Luda, as he had no fancy facial tentacles like the latter. Luda's tentacles were also parted evenly to the sides of his face, while this one had his tentacles in a long ponytail. While Luda was often seen in magenta robes, he was dressed in more of a warrior's attire, with a beautifully crafted indigo chestplate that had small pink tentacle decal on it. Two swords were on his belt, the blades skinny and double edged. The lower half of his body was more robe-like, with cloth covering his legs, which were armored underneath. He bowed to his master obediently out of respect, which Octavio acknowledged with a nod. Octavio was currently in a fancy room, with several decorations around that made the whole evil castle look more cozy and welcoming. There were several paintings, one of Octavio and his deceased family, and nearby was a long furnished wooden table with several fancy and extravagant bottles of drinks. On the floor was a rug, designed with intricate patterns including Octarians of all different kinds. Octavio was in a large leather chair, a fireplace burning in front of him, while he looked out the window, deep in thought.

"Good. Tell them to await my orders, until then, they may discuss amongst themselves." Octavio said, waving away his subject. However, the Octoling did not move from his spot. Octavio could still see his subject at the corner of his eye, and simply sighed at the sight.

"Cobias, what are you still doing here?" Octavio asked the Octoling.

"Sir, you appear troubled. What's on your mind?" Cobias asked, but Octavio shook his head.

"It is nothing troubling, I was merely thinking about something. It's just...of the many cycles of defeat I've gone through, each time trying to destroy those pesky Inklings, and the only time I ever got them to the brink was...my first attack, all those years ago, when it all started."

"But Lord Octavio, surely your persistence has made you better each time you return, does it not?"

"Yes, it would be that way...but there was always one thingthat stood in the way, always one thing that existed to stop me…"

"Cuttlefish." Cobias muttered, already aware of his master's past.

"Exactly. All those many years ago, was so close to bringing them towards the edge, so close to finishing their worthless species off. But then, the Cuttlefish appeared. I didn't even know who they were, all I knew was that they were Inklings, and thus they had to be destroyed. But I underestimated them. I looked at their small village with a similar name to the country it is located in, and I just saw them as normal, weak villagers that my troops and creatures could consume within minutes. But I was wrong...and my war, my side, my life paid the price."

"You couldn't have known they were as powerful as they were." Cobias said, trying to comfort his master, but Octavio just shook his head.

"No, I was cocky. I was cocky and stupid. That last, final battle of the war, me against the Cuttlefish clan, I had sworn that I would haunt their family for generations to come, and they promised that every time I returned, a Cuttlefish would always be there to stop me. And I never really thought about it until now. Every time I returned, I already knew that a Cuttlefish would be there. But with every time I pass and come back, I always told myself that I would learn from my mistakes, that every time I returned, I would return stronger and smarter, and that I will one day succeed and defeat their family line once again...and yet I never have."

"Lord Octavio, you are the wisest Octarian I know. If anyone can defeat the Cuttlefish who wields the Inkhander, it is you. You probably have learned from any mistakes you made, and I'm sure they are struggling to combat you because as you learn, yu grow stronger,"

"That's what I told myself...but in the back of my mind, I always knew...they would beat me, and there would always be a Cuttlefish there to stop me, again and again...until now. Ironic, isn't it? That the very people the Cuttlefish family line has protected for generations against me have turned on them, banishing them from the country and forbid them to associate themselves with the royal family and Inkopolis. And now...there is no one in my way. The thief who stole the Inkhander may be from the family line, but what success would they have when the have the whole kingdom against them, as well as me?" Octavio stood up, glaring into the fireplace, watching the flames grow, the heat gently caressing his face.

"Then let's seize this moment, my lord. Let's take back what was ours, and destroy the Inklings once and for all." Cobias said, raising his fist enthusiastically.

"Yes Cobias. It is finally that time, that time when all my patience and suffering pays off. When I finally watch the Cuttlefish family dissipate and die with history. When I finally watch the last of the Inklings die, when I finally avenge my family. And when this all happens, it will be the most satisfying victory in recorded history." Octavio said, before waving his hands, the magic he used instantly killing the flames, with only smoke remaining from the wood. He then began to leave the room, Cobias walking close behind.

"Cobias, gather my Elites and tell them to gather my army. We will move at my order."

"Yes my lord." Cobias replied, and ran off to fulfill his master's demands.

* * *

**Uh oh, looks like Eight's in trouble. Wonder what will happen when the Inklings living in the town see what the soldiers find. Anyways, thanks for reading this new chapter, and be sure to look out in the future for the next one! Remember to leave a review or comment and enjoy the rest of your day.**


	4. Chapter 4

**The Hunt Begins**

**New chapter is out now! This one is another short chapter, so hopefully maybe I can get in another long one or maybe a couple more short ones. That being said and out of the way, I hope you enjoy!**

* * *

"Sir, your kelp tea." A butler said, handing the King of Mollusca his drink, which was contained in a small cup on top of a smaller dish. The King took a small sip from his drink, releasing a sigh of relief afterwards. It was the middle of the night now, the King already in his nightgown and under the protection of his bed covers. His curtains were open, and one could see the bright starry night sky that was outside. Inkopolis was calm and quiet at nights as always, despite the recent threat of Octavio just looming on the horizon. The Great Zapfish, which was curled around the center tower of the Inkopolis Castle was the source of power for the city and the Castle itself, with electric lanterns inside the King's room powered by the Zapfish.

"Thank you Jefferson. In stressful times such as this, there's nothing better than having a cup of kelp tea in the morning." The King said to his old friend, who just silently nodded. The King ran a hand through his tentacle beard, still pondering to himself about the recent events. He's sent his son Drew to hunt for Reika, and he had spread his soldiers throughout the whole kingdom in an effort to find the girl. But it wasn't necessarily the girl they were mainly after, rather, it was the weapon she stole from his treasury.

"Is something troubling you, sir?" The butler, Jefferson, asked kindly. The King waved his concern off, but indeed the butler was right, something was troubling him. He had yet to hear from his son about his search, and none of his soldiers have found the girl or the sword. Octavio's deadline was closing in, and the stress of the whole situation was getting to him.

"No Jefferson, I'm fine."

"I find that hard to believe, your majesty. You must be taking this whole Cuttlefish and Octavio fiasco very hard." Jefferson argued. The King simply sighed, figuring he couldn't do anything more to convince the old squid that he was perfectly fine.

"Fine, fine, this whole thing has been slowly killing me from the inside out. Ever since Octavio's ultimatum, I've been on the edge, constantly trying to find that wretched girl and her legendary weapon. I realize it's only been one full day since Octavio was in the sky, but it's slowly driving me mad! All day, I've been thinking of the many ways I could have just stopped this all. I could have destroyed the Inkhander when it was in my possession, I could have searched harder for the remaining members of the Cuttlefish family, and just end them all right there. All that I could have done...and I didn't. But in the end, all this sacrifice, it will be worth it when peace between our two species finally occurs." The King said.

"If I may ask your Majesty, why do you think that having a deal with Octavio, a man with a century long grudge with our kind, will bring peace between us?" Jefferson questioned, and the King smiled.

"I'm glad you asked. It all started about a hundred years ago. The royal family saw no reason for the Cuttlefish family to be around us anymore, and so we ousted them from Inkopolis and Mollusca. However, the reason why we weren't so fond of their kind anymore was because of our new goal. For a century now, my family has been working to repair our ties with the Octarians, and possibly get our species to be friends once again. But we realized we couldn't have peace with them, not while those Cuttlefish existed, always on edge and ready to spill Octarian ink. But now that Octavio is here, maybe he can help repair our ties."

"But sir, his family was murdered by one of your ancestors in cold blood. I don't see how-"

"That's where you are wrong. Octavio will help me, because I will give him reparations for my ancestor's wrongdoings. I will not allow full genocide, but if some land and people have to be sacrificed for the greater good of our future and theirs, perhaps it isn't so bad, hm?" The King said. Jefferson nodded slightly, and told the King to carry on. "With someone powerful like Octavio, someone the Octarians look up to as a powerful and strong leader, it would be wise to try to get his help on this matter. I look forward to being the first King to repair our relationship, and I will see to it that peace is restored, no matter the cost. If all the Cuttlefish are to be eradicated, if the Great Zapfish must be handed to them, if some land needs to be sacrificed, then so be it." The King finished.

"Interesting plan, your Majesty. Are you certain it will work?"

"Certainly. I just need to find that sword...and then everything will fall into place. I can only hope for a better tomorrow now, so good night Jefferson."

"Good night to you as well, sir." Jefferson said. He shut off the electric lanterns within the room before quietly shutting the double doors, watching as his master fell fast asleep. Although Jefferson has been on his King's side for the royal's whole life, he couldn't help but sense that something terrible is going to occur, and that the King might be making a mistake when dealing with Octavio...

* * *

The inn was silent, with hardly any sound penetrating the walls of Reika's room. The Inkling in question was still sprawled on her bed, snoozing away quietly. Only the sounds of some night time bugs and the occasional footsteps of passing Inklings and other creatures could be heard. Reika started to twist and turn from her spot, but not violently. She was quite peaceful in her sleep, mouthing words but not speaking and making the occasional whining noise. In her head, she was currently dreaming, but it wasn't just any dream. Reika found herself in a small cabin, which she suddenly recognized as Cuttlefish Cabin, where her supposed grandfather lived, along with her cousin and sister. The cabin didn't look like much, and there was some junk lying around in piles near the house. A lake was near the cabin, with a small homemade looking dock with a wooden rowboat. On another end of the cabin was a small garden with a few random crops, and a chicken coop near the garden, the birds clucking as they walked around, pecking at the dirt. The cabin was located in an open clearing, with some trees around, but the woods weren't thick and were quite sparse compared to the woods she traversed through with her new Octoling friend. She could hear insects making chirping and buzzing noises, and watched as a flock of birds flew from a tree. Reika just watched as her family were talking and laughing together, with Callie on the floor giggling uncontrollably between fits of laughter and deep breaths. Reika took a deep breath herself, taking in the nice peaceful scene that was before her. It was everything she wanted right now. A calm, peaceful life, where she wasn't responsible with the task of fighting a powerful wizard of any kind. A life where she could do whatever she wanted, without being pressured by the rest of the kingdom to save them. Although she wanted to be a knight to help her people, she never expected to ever get into anything chaotic such as a war. The scene was beautiful in her eyes. No, this wasn't just her dream, it was her wish, her current fantasy.

Reika was too caught up in the moment, she hadn't noticed that Callie and Craig Cuttlefish had disappeared, however Marie was walking towards her. She Marie walked towards the Inkling, the scene behind her started to vanish and wither away slowly.

"Reika. Reika. Hey, are you there?"

"Hm? What? What is it?" Reika exclaimed, startled by her sister's sudden voice.

"Oh great, you aren't completely ignoring me. Just wanted to talk to you, see how you're doing. You left in quite a hurry last time we met, and just saying you definitely looked stressed and maybe a bit terrified. Speaking of that, how are you doing?" Marie pointed out before asking her sister on her current condition. Suddenly, Reika's whole surroundings were pitch black, nothing and no one there except herself and Marie.

"Besides having the greatest dream I've had in a while only to be interrupted by you, and then having an Octoling follow me-"

"A what? When did that happen!? Is the Octoling dangerous? Please don't tell me they are your prisoner or hostage…" Marie asked.

"I mean...she doesn't seem dangerous. And no, she's not my prisoner or hostage, I just saved her from some weirdos at a bar."

"Wait, you went to a bar!?"

"That's not the point! The point is, I hate this job I have. Why is it that I'm the one that has to fight Octavio!? Why can't I just have a normal life, I mean, being a normal knight back at Inkopolis seemed pretty okay to me, at least I'm not tasked with fighting somebody who could just wish me dead." Reika said.

"Look, I get this sounds super hard for you, and believe me, it should be hard. Something like this isn't supposed to be easy, but delaying the inevitable isn't going to make the whole situation go away or solve any of the current problems going on right now." Marie told her, trying to comfort the Inkling as much as she could right at this moment.

"I know it's not going to be easy, but at the same time I'm not even sure I'm cut out for this. I mean, I'm still technically a kid. How are you supposed to expect someone like me fight Octavio? Actually, why can't you just use it? Or Callie? Or some other person, I don't know!" Reika asked.

"Look, I wouldn't fare any better than you, in fact, I'll probably do worse. I've never been quite skilled at swords, I'm more of a magic kind of gal. Callie on the other hand, while she's better at using swords than me, that's not how it works. Yes, people of the Cuttlefish family can only actually use the sword, but the sword also chooses who is able to unlock its full power against fighting Octarians."

"So...you're saying Callie CAN use it...she just can't use it to its full potential...right?" Reika asked, trying to understand her sister's explanation.

"Exactly."

"Then how do you know that I'm the one who's supposed to use it? What if it decides to pick Gramps again or something?"

"It won't. The Inkhander is somewhat alive, after all it has the soul of the Kraken in it, and while it sounds like some big dumb beast, it's definitely not stupid."

"Okay...where are you right now?" Reika asked, curious of her sister's whereabouts.

"Oh, Callie and I've been trying to track down Octavio's Castle for you. I've been using several spells just to uncover this thing's location, pretty tiring if you ask me. We think we've found the approximate area of the Castle, so I'll be sure to try to meet you somewhere and give you directions."

"Great…"

"Oh, and stop trying to walk away from all of this and pretending that if you ignore it long enough it will go away. You have four days left to fight him before mad chaos ensues and he starts another big war." Marie chastised, which confused Reika.

"Why four?"

"Because yesterday, Octavio appeared in the sky and made a deal with your sorry-excuse-of-a-king to find the Inkhander so Octavio can destroy it. The King has to find it within five days, or else Octavio destroys everything and everyone. So far, one day, which was today, has passed." Marie informed her. Reika just bowed her head in sorrow, wondering what Drew was doing or thinking. Had he revoked their long time friendship? Was he helping to try to kill her and assist his father? She didn't know, and wasn't sure anymore, which was starting to scare her. She bent her head down in shame, burying her face in her hands, feeling even more weight on her already heavy shoulders.

"Look, I'm sorry if that five day limit is really getting to you, but you gotta hurry. Don't worry, I'm not going to abandon you, you don't have to do this by yourself. I'll help you find the Castle, I'll help you fight off his army, okay kiddo?" Marie asked reassuringly. The Inkling just sighed, feeling the already heavy weight on her shoulders grow heavier and heavier.

"Alright…" Reika muttered. Suddenly, she could hear loud shouts and cries. The muffled sounds from outside must have been loud, as they traveled past the thick walls of the inn. Reika's eyes shot open, and she stood up, listening to the noise. It sounded like shouts of anger, and when she pulled back the curtains, she could see people starting to rush somewhere. A few of them lit their roads with torches, and they all seemed to be going the same direction. Another thing she noticed was that EIght was gone, nowhere inside the room. It didn't take long for Reika to put the pieces together…

"_Where are you going? What's going on?"_ Marie asked in her head.

"You know that Octoling I saved? I think she's in trouble, again. Look, I'm gonna try to save her before she gets killed by an angry mob outside." Reika explained, quickly grabbing her things.

"_Alright. Be safe though, okay? We're gonna need you later, alive if I may add."_ Marie said.

"I'll try." Reika replied while rolling her eyes, rushing out the door with her gear and the Inkhander in hand.

* * *

The soldiers enjoyed roughing up Eight, whacking her several times with strong punches. The Octoling, who was currently curled in a ball and covering her head, took the blows silently until they stopped, grabbing her by the biceps and hoisting her up, dragging her along the road. She watched as her audience, made up of a majority of Inklings and a few other sea creatures, watched her, glaring at her. Some spat as she was ragged by, others shouted insults and curses. The whole crowd was dotted with orange, coming from the small flames of their torches. She was finally dragged to an open clearing, a spot where the crowd had made room. There in the clearing stood several soldiers holding torches in their hands, weapons on the other and ready to attack her or anyone else that dared intervene. They stood around a pile of flammable material, consisting of piles upon piles of chopped firewood and other wooden materials like old furniture. In the middle of the pile was a long wooden pole.

"Alright men, tie her right on up!" The commanding officer from before told them. His grunts man handled Eight and grabbed her, with two of them climbing up the pile of wood while a third followed with lots of rope in hand. Together, they tied her high on the pole, the rope pressing against her body and squeezing her tightly. It was an unpleasant experience for the Octoling, who was squirming around and trying to free herself. The leader noticed this and simply laughed at her efforts.

"Haha, don't even try to squirm out. Sure, you can turn into a small little octopus, but believe me, my men and I will skewer you before you can even reach the walls of this town." He taunted, before turning to the men around the wood pile, giving them simple orders. "Alright boys, light her up!" And they did as asked, lowering their torches so the flames made contact with the wood. It took hardly more than a second for the wood to catch fire, and soon enough it began to spread like crazy, the fire getting higher and hotter as seconds passed. As the flames got larger and the heat got intense, the soldiers with torches back away a few steps, watching the public execution occur. The leader turned to his audience, a wide victorious grin on his face as he pumped his fists in the air.

"People of Myopsida, I'm proud to present you an Octarian witch my men and I have found during our routine patrol around your beloved town. This Octarian, upon seeing us questioning some suspicious citizens we caught, had attacked us and splatted a few of my men in cold blood! Look at what Octavio has brought to us, such horrible monsters who dare invade our town and land, terrorizing our people!" The officer shouted. The crowd roared with praise and shouts, pumping their fists in the air. Seeing as he now had the townspeople on his side, the officer smiled. He knew he had gone out of protocol when questioning the Inkling family, but the people didn't need to know that. They just needed to see that an Octoling was sneaking around in their town, and he knew that's all they needed to be riled up.

"Let us watch this Octarian scum burn, let us watch her burn and scream, watch her feel the pain our fellow Inklings have felt when her monsters of a kind attacked our villages and towns, slaughtering all who remained alive. For Inkopolis!" He said, and the crowd shouted once more in agreement. They watched silently, watching as Eight struggled against the heat. Her cloak was burning up, the flames shredding off pieces of cloth and burning the edges. The shreds of cloth that fell off simply burned almost immediately in the blaze of heat, and already Eight could feel the fire singeing her cheeks and now exposed limbs.

"H-help! Help me please, you don't understand, I was trying to help your kind!"  
"Shut your mouth, Octoling!" The officer said, picking up a stone and chucking it at her head. The stone slammed onto the side of her forehead, which had ink now seeping from the wound. Eight was now really feeling the flames get to her, the fire starting to burn her skin. She felt like the ink in her ink sac was boiling, and any time now she would melt away. With tears streaming down her face, she lifted her head towards the night sky, watching as the embers and sparks floated up in the direction of her gaze.

"Three, save me! Please, someone, save me!" Eight shouted in between uncontrollable sobs of pain and sorrow. "I'm sorry Inklings...I'm sorry!" Eight shouted once more. The scene of the execution, while it was an Octoling they were watching die, disturbed some of the crowd as they listened to the Octoling plea for mercy in a mix of Inkling and Octarian languages. Some people turned around and refused to watch any more, suddenly feeling sick to their stomach and not being able to bear watching any longer as they listened to the girl's pleas for help. Eight let out another hopeless cry for help, before the flames grew even taller, so much so that no one could see them. The lead soldier, a satisfied grin on his face, knew he had won the favor of the townspeople, as before then, he would hear gossip about him and his men, and how terrible they were at their jobs and how horrible guests they were in their town. He imagined that future nights would be of him spending time with people who now saw him as a local hero, while also roaming around with some ladies. Before he could continue dreaming though, he suddenly felt wind rush above his head quickly. He could hear several gasps and shouts, and he noticed one of his soldiers were pointing at the flames.  
"The Octoling, she's got an accomplice! She's being freed!" One shouted, grabbing his ink spear. They could feel something brush above them quickly before leaping into the flames. The officer noticed that there were two shadows within the flames when he looked: one was the Octoling, and the other was someone else, an intruder who was interrupting their party. He could see the intruder's arms move, like they were untying the Octoling from the pole to free her.

"Hey, don't just stand there, stop them!" He shouted at his men, who grabbed their weapons and tried to approach the flames. However, the fire was just too large and dangerous to get near, and soon the figure grabbed the Octoling and swung off of some unusual looking rope, both of them landing on the roof of a building nearby. Wasting no time and not willing to let some stranger take his prized prisoner, the officer told his men to follow, and they ran towards the direction of the two, their main goal being to capture them both.

"Eight. Eight, you okay? Hey, talk to me!" Reika said, shaking the Octoling. She held her in her arms, the Inkhander lying on the roof near her feet. The Octoling opened her eyes, with Reika helping her up on her feet. As she did this, the Inkling was observing the damage on her friend from the flames. From what she could see from the light of the still burning execution fire being reflected off Eight, she could see the Octoling's cloak was mostly ruined, with just torn and singed pieces of cloth remaining, all held together but barely. Her limbs were bare, with black and gray scorch and burn marks dotting her skin. Her cheeks were red and slightly gray from the fire as well, while also sporting some tear stains.

* * *

"Y-you actually s-saved me…" Eight muttered.  
"Why wouldn't I? We're friends now, aren't we?"

"Are we?" Eight asked nervously, hoping that she heard the Inkling right.

"Yeah, we are." Reika replied, looking over the edge to see the soldiers rushing at their location. She then turned to the Octoling, who was probably waiting for her to say something.

"They're coming. We better move, not unless you want to be cooked alive again."

"Okay. Where should we run?"

"Anywhere that leads out of here. Use your magic, follow me." Reika said, and she ran off towards another rooftop, the Inkhander in hand. The legendary sword still had the tentacle wrapped around the blade, and was hidden in the shadows of the night. The two were only visible from the minimal light from the earlier fire and the light from the moon. Reika leapt off the roof and landed on another one, with Eight following close behind. They could hear the soldiers down below, their officer screaming orders and strategies to trap them. As they ran, they soon found soldiers arriving on the rooftops. Reika grabbed Eight's arm and they both ducked, dodging several arrows flying at their heads. Reika then pulled the Octoling towards her and they skidded down roof, with some roof tiles peeling off as they slid down and landed on some wooden crates. There, two soldiers met them, both with ink spears. One lunged at them, thrusting his spear forwards. Reika simply moved aside and swung the Inkhander forward, whacking him in the face and knocking him out, his helmet flying off. His fellow comrade swung his spear horizontally, nearly taking Eight's head off if she hadn't ducked. Eight then attacked with an ink projectile, launching the soldier into the side of a building.

"Come on, let's go!" Reika said, hearing even more soldiers coming to their location now that they were on the ground. The archers from above shot another volley of arrows, which the two narrowly missed. Eight threw another ink projectile at them, splatting two while the other three ran for cover, trying to find a better position to attack from. Five soldiers hopped down towards the duo, surrounding them. They all had swords, unsheathing them and pointing the blades at the girls.

"Surrender criminal scum!" One soldier ordered. Reika drew the Inkhander, the tentacle quickly wrapping around her right arm. The blade's silver metal reflected the moonlight, and the ink around the tentacle seemed to shine as well. Eight prepared two more ink projectiles, which she held in her hands until they needed to be used. The soldiers almost immediately recognized the sword in Reika's hand, their eyes widening in shock as they stepped back slightly.

"Th-the Inkhander! That means...you're the thief we've been looking for! Get her, don't let her escape!" The soldier exclaimed, and they all charged at once. Reika blocked a downwards swing that was coming for her face, before cleaving the side of one of the soldiers. He fell down easily, shouting in pain. Two more went for her, and she did her best to block their multiple attacks, the blades clashing and making loud clanging noises as they did so.. To their surprise, their brutal swings at her couldn't get a single scratch on her body. She retaliated when they were starting to tire out, cutting into one's shoulder while quickly swinging to slice into the second soldier's leg. They both spun down to the ground, grasping their wounds while their friends attacked Eight, who was back to back with Reika. Eight held her own surprisingly well considering her condition, but Reika soon intervened after noticing the Octoling was struggling to keep up. Reika swung the Inkhander forward, trying her best to mentally command the tentacle to swing and whip at her enemies. It quickly unraveled itself and shot forward, slashing at a soldier's face and damaging his eye. He fell backwards and screamed in agony, clutching his damaged face while stuck in a fetal position. Three tried swinging the tentacle around herself to ward off the rest of the armed men, doing her best to control the weapon. However, still being the beginner she was and still not quite used to using a sword with a long tentacle on it, she nearly slapped herself in the face and almost took out Eight with a swing to the head.

"Hey!" Eight shouted, glaring at Reika while she quickly apologized for nearly killing her.

"Sorry, still trying to get used to this new feature, heheh…" Reika laughed off nervously, the Octoling shooting her a look of disapproval. The tentacle quickly wrapped around her arm once more, securing her grip of the weapon as the rest of the militia stationed in the town arrived along with the commanding officer. He glared at Reika and Eight, his gaze appearing as if it could kill. That's all that was in his mind now, killing. If he murders these two, not only does he get the respect of the King from retrieving the lost weapon, but he also finally kills the pesky Octoling who has been causing him so much trouble recently.

"Cuttlefish! You've caused your own species enough suffering and you made all this mess! Come quietly and peacefully, and I will assure you a painless demise along with your little criminal friend." The officer said, glaring at her. He unsheathed his sword, forming a battle stance as he glared at the Inkling, his mind hungry for combat.

"Not a chance." Reika replied. She didn't really know any set battle stances besides several basic ones from her knight training, but even then she hardly knew how to masterfully use a sword, let alone something like the legendary Inkhander, compared to a battle-hardened soldier who has probably trained heavily in the art of killing and combat. She set aside her nervous thoughts, doing her best to calm herself down and try to focus on the fight.

"Suit yourself. I wouldn't mind cutting you up tonight anyways." The officer said, and he rushed forwards. Eight tried to create an ink barrier with her magic, but Reika shoved her out of the way, knowing the Octoling was too weak to perform the spell in time. Reika quickly blocked the officer's slash attack with her own, both of them now pushing against each other's blades. The officer used his superior upper body strength to push harder, shoving Reika backwards and giving him valuable time to land a blow. He thrusted his sword forwards, catching her stomach and leaving a gash on her. She stumbled backwards onto the ground, holding her injury while he taunted her from above.

"I would have assumed a legendary Cuttlefish such as you would have put up a better fight. I guess I overestimated you…" The officer said, his voice cold and terrifying. He raised his arms up and swung down quickly, Nearly cutting Reika in two if she didn't roll out of the way. Her roll caused her some pain from her stab wound, but she mentally told herself to brush it off and continue fighting. By now, the rest of the officer's men were joining in on the fight, each taking their own swings at the Inkling. Reika hopped around, managing to only get a small slash on her bare arms and a small cut to her face. Reika could feel the ink seeping from her main stomach wound, and she held the ink in to her best ability as she fought the soldiers off. Eight wanted to help Reika, who was obviously struggling under the multiple attackers cornering her.

"_Come on Eight, do something! Can't just stand here and watch!"_ Eight scolded herself, taking a deep breath and forming a large ball of ink, concentrating on the officer and his grunts as they cornered Three. As she formed the ball in her hands, she eyed each and every one of the soldiers, mostly putting her focus on the officer. The projectile now in her hand, she threw it, shouting over to her friend.

"Three, run!" Eight shouted. Reika didn't bother to question the Octoling and ran, jumping out of the way as a large explosion consumed most of the soldiers, all the while throwing the officer and the remaining survivors in all different directions. Reika stood up, brushing herself off and wincing in pain as she touched her injury. Eight noticed that her injury was still bleeding, and took no time to waste.

"Let's go Three, before they get up!" Eight exclaimed. Even though Eight wasn't in any better condition than her friend, she knew they would have to keep moving if they were to escape this town. Reika nodded in agreement, following her as they both ran through the town, with still more angry soldiers coming their way.

* * *

**Octavio's Castle…**

"Cobias, Luda, with me."

"Yes my Lord." Both of Octavio's loyal servants said obediently, following their leader into a large room. The room had a long extravagant wooden table with the most expensive looking cloth on it for a tablecloth. Several chairs lined the sides and the two ends of the table, and a large chandelier hung from the ceiling. This room was a war council room, a room where Octavio discussed his usual war plans with his high ranking Elites and other Octarians with him. Two of those high ranking followers of his happened to be Luda and Cobias, who stood there and awaited Octavio's instructions.

"Don't just stand there, sit down. I need to discuss something important with the two of you." The two of them glanced at each other before pulling out a chair and taking a seat. Octavio was at the head of the table, with Luda on one side and Cobias on the other side.

"As you two are already aware, my past failures were all thanks to one thing, one being that existed to stop me in my tracks and reverse all the work I do."

"Cuttlefish." Luda muttered.

"However, this time it's different. There is no Cuttlefish, and even if there were, they're currently occupied with the hundreds of soldiers the Inkling King has sent on the hunt. Better yet, the King seems too occupied with trying to make peace and deals with me, he doesn't seem to understand that giving me what I want isn't as simple as I made his simple mind thinks it will be. That being said, there has never been a better time to destroy the Inklings than now." Octavio stated.

"Then let us destroy them while the Cuttlefish family is gone. They have no defenses to rival our army, we can sweep the lands of Inklings and drive them to extinction like we always wanted." Luda said in confidence. He curled his fist in the air, demonstrating with his hand how he wanted to crush his adversaries.

"Which is precisely why I called the two of you here. You are the closest assets I have right now, even closer than my Elite generals. That means you two will have more clout and say in what to do and how everything plays out. Of course, you both still answer to me at all times, but as my trusted advisors, you have my full trust."

"Thank you my Lord, I appreciate the trust we have between us." Luda said, bowing his head slightly while Cobias rolled his eyes.  
"That being said, we must begin planning our next move. Cuttlefish can't hide for much longer, and I assure you soon the King will find them, whoever the new Cuttlefish may be. Now, it's time I start discussing our next move. I plan on moving our castle location to either Pesci or Tilapia, depending on which location offers better strategic value."

"Perhaps we should discuss with your Elites. Since they do lead a considerable amount of your army, I'm sure they would have valuable strategic tips and input into our next move." Cobias suggested.

"Perhaps...have you spoken to any of them yet?"

"No, however if you want I can request their presence here."

"No no, that's fine. Luda, what is the King's progress on finding the Inkhander?"

"None of his troops have reported back to him any sightings of either the sword or the thief who stole it." Luda answered. Upon hearing this, Octavio sighed. It was already one day, and the King has barely made any progress. He only had four days left before Octavio would destroy the entirety of the Inkling species, and he imagined this was putting the King on edge.

"Lord Octavio, you do plan on making the Inklings suffer, yes?" Cobias asked.

"Yes, I will, but as for destroying them, no, not right now, not too early. Of all the Kings I have seen from my previous encounters, this one is like no other, and it fascinates me. Why, of all times, would he be asking if we could arrange peace between our sides? None of his ancestors have ever asked me before, instead choosing to just sic the Cuttlefish on me. I want to see how far he goes, how far he's willing to push to see to it that a treaty and agreement is reached."

"My Lord, I have a suggestion to help speed up the current progression of the search and maybe especially for that King of yours. Perhaps if we strike a few more towns or villages with our monsters, maybe that will be enough motivation for the King, as Cobias suggest. However, I do suggest we attack something a bit more populated rather than attacking those small minuscule farming villages." Luda said, pointing to his fellow advisor.

"Very well. Which would you choose?" Octavio asked, and Luda gave a devilish grin as he thought about which important town would be near them.

"I suggest Myopsida. It's a trade town, not large enough to make it a city, but big enough that it makes an impact. Our King most likely won't be too worried about a small obscure village, but something like this will definitely display that our threat is a serious matter and get his attention." Luda proposed confidently. Octavio simply closed his eyes and waved his advisor away.

"Very well, carry it out. Cobias, gather my Elites and discuss with them future locations to move."

"As you wish, my Lord." They both said simultaneously. Cobias left the room silently, but Luda remained behind right outside the room, with one more question for his leader.

"Lord Octavio, if you don't mind me asking, do you ever intend to make peace with the Inklings like the King asks?" Luda asked.

"Perhaps. But making peace with them now and just throwing away all their past mistakes just so that they can forget it ever happened cannot be allowed, I refuse to see it happen. That's why they must suffer right now, endure the punishment that's been long overdue. They kill some of mine, I kill many of theirs."

"Interesting input my lord. I've always found your words inspiring to me. I thank you for the opportunity to be at your side." Luda said, bowing to his master before he walked away. As he walked out the door, he was shocked to see Cobias was standing right outside, his back leaning against the wall and his arms crossed, a serious and deadpan expression on his face.

"Luda, what was that stunt you just pulled?"

"What, can't the Lord's assistant praise him for his wondrous deeds? Besides, I thought it was nice of him to answer my question, goes to show how much care he has in those who are on his side." Luda explained nonchalantly, but Cobias shook his head in disapproval.

"And your idea of praise is to question his deeds? You know he will make those bastard Inklings suffer, why then do you ask him?"

"Because...Octavio is an interesting man, what more can one ask for? Now enough about my questions, come help me prepare the monsters for Myopsida. I'll need some suggestions, and I'm sure you would be quite knowledgeable in that topic." Luda said. Cobias silently followed, but noted in the back of his mind to keep a watchful eye on the devious-sounding wizard.

* * *

**Hopefully you enjoyed this chapter, despite its pretty short size. I don't really have much else to say, so be sure to leave a review and have a nice day!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Siege**

**I'm back! Sorry for the long wait, don't really know what took me so long! I really don't have much o write as far as author's notes goes for now, besides the fact that I apologize you had to wait this long for a new chapter. So, enjoy!**

* * *

"I think they went over there! You five, cut across, and the rest of you, with me!" A soldier barks out, pointing at several of his fellow men. The group of five he pointed at nodded and ran off to the side, while he motioned for the rest to follow. The splatoon rushed past an alley, their armor making low pitched clanking noises as they sprinted off. What they failed to realize as they rushed to find the fugitives was that in the alley they had passed by, among the shadows, two figures hid. The instant she heard the last of their footsteps become silent, Eight emerged from the dark, helping the injured Reika walk. Eight laid her down against a wooden crate, trying to move the Inkling's arm, which was clutching her stomach wound.

"Here, move your arm. I know a simple heal spell that should make some of the pain go away for a bit, until we find some help." Eight whispered. The Inkling complied, moving her arm away. Eight examined the gash, which had a steady leakage of ink around it. She hovered her hands near the wound, and her palms started to give off a faint glow as she started the spell. The Inkling could feel most of the pain starting to recede, and she felt a sudden wave of relief from the area where she was hit.

"H-how much spells do you remember exactly?" Reika asked weakly. Eight looked up at her, her palms still radiating some healing energy.

"Only a handful. I really only know how to do simple stuff, like those basic ink projectiles and ink shields. Even this heal spell is super basic, it won't be able to patch up a stab wound like this completely, but it will prevent you from bleeding out. I get some glimpses of spells I remember, and sometimes I just suddenly remember one, but I don't know. It all seems random."

"Was that makeshift door thing a new one?"

"Yeah, I remembered it a few days ago."

"Cool...we should be moving soon...before they come back around."

"Okay, almost done." Eight agreed, and she focused on doing her best to heal the wound. After a few more seconds, the spell ceased to make any major healing effect. While the wound had stopped bleeding heavily, there was still some leftover ink on it, and Reika could still feel a slight sharp pain there. Eight helped the Inkling up on her feet, and they emerged out of the alley and towards the streets, which were lit by lanterns perched on the buildings. The coast was clear, with nobody in sight, so they took this opportunity to rush towards the wall of the town. Eight could now see the large protective stone wall, and a watchtower nearby with a torch lit on top.

"We're almost there! I'll make a door so we can pass through!"

"Here, I can walk by myself now." Reika insisted, getting Eight's arm off her and ran ahead. As they reached the wall however, suddenly from both sides mass amounts of soldiers rushed in, their spears all aiming towards the duo. On the wall, archers were perched there, ink arrows right on their bowstrings and ready to be fired.

"You two, we've got you now, dirty criminal scum!" A soldier in the front said, but he was not the officer from before. He was simply another grunt that was filling in for the time being.

"Carp." Reika muttered under her breath.

"You there," The man shouted, pointing at Reika, "hand over your sword. Now." He demanded, pointing his broadsword at her threateningly. She reached for the Inkhander slowly, which was equipped on her back. As she observed the enemies surrounding her, Reika already knew she was at a loss. Sure, she could probably take out ten of them at most if she was lucky, and Eight could probably add more to the count, but they would hardly make a dent in their numbers, and there was no possible way for the duo to take them all on. It didn't help that Reika was hardly used to the Inkhander and Eight only knew some basic attack and protection spells. Realizing that escape was impossible and that they were completely surrounded and outnumbered, Reika admitted defeat and pulled out her Inkhander, quietly handing it to the soldier. He then motioned to several of his men, who quickly ran over and apprehended them roughly, taking them back to the town square.

* * *

It wasn't long before the two were taken back to the square, where most of the population still remained. As they were pushed along by the soldiers, Reika could see the unhappy faces of the people around her, the crowd of eyes staring her down. She couldn't tell if they were angry at her for running off with the Inkhander, or if they were disappointed she had been caught. They were pushed onto a wooden makeshift stage, the steps creaking beneath their feet as they walked up. On the small stage, Reika saw the officer from before. He was still covered in some of the ink from the blast, and seemed to have taken some serious injuries from the attack but he seemed fine nonetheless, and the fact both Eight and Reika had been caught alive made him pleased.

"People of Myopsida, the Great Zapfish has gifted us with the strength to find these two criminals!" He shouted, the crowd replying with some cheers, while a few of them remained silent. He then grabbed Reika's long tentacles, dragging her forward and slamming her onto the hard wood floor of the stage. She grunted in pain from landing on her stomach wound, and getting up was difficult thanks to the ropes around her wrists that tied her arms back. The officer helped her up, though not kindly as he hoisted Reika up by her tentacles in the air, her feet dangling several inches from the floor.

"Better yet, we have managed to find the prized Cuttlefish who stole the Inkhander from the King! No doubt the King will now be able to do what he can to ensure our safety. After all, Octavio just wanted this Inkling girl and the sword, and we have both! We are saved, my fellow Inkling brethren! Saved!" He shouted maniacally, and the crowd followed with a few roars of cheers and praise. But that wasn't the end, as the officer had more to add to further incriminate her.

"During our search, it turns out that this Cuttlefish is actually the one who decided to free our Octarian prisoner! I ask you all, especially those who are still loyal to them and their disgusting family, those who still believe the lies, I truly ask you; would you really believe in a hero who saves the enemy, a hero who ignores the putrid evil within the ones they fight?" He shouted, but no answer was given. He stared at Reika, who was squirming around in the air. Giving her a nasty toothy grin, he landed a punch right where he had stabbed her earlier, making the young Inkling give out a short cry in pain. Pain shot through her stomach and chest as her legs wiggled around. She peered into his eyes, and all Reika could see was a cold-blooded, violent killer in the officer, not a noble soldier like she would have believed they would appear, back when she was a child. He gave her another punch on the wound, and she cried in pain once again. Reika could hear Eight's protests in the back, and she could hear the soldiers trying to hold the Octoling back and restrain her. The officer winded his arm back for another strike, but before he could, a loud monstrous roar erupted. Suddenly, Reika looked down at the crowd to see them start screaming at the top of their lungs and either backing away or running. The officer and his soldiers watched and listened to their panicked cries before turning around, finally seeing what all the townspeople were fleeing from: Octavio's monsters, flying down towards them, their only single motive clear from the vicious glare of their eyes, and that motive was to hunt for Inkling flesh. The monsters flying towards them had large wings, their arms and legs showing visible muscles, as well as sharp claws at their fingers and toes. Their teeth had grown longer and sharper to resemble fangs, and they had small head tentacles on their heads.

"Sir, monsters! They-" A soldier tried shouting but one clawed off his face, and he fell down soon after, his lifeless body bleeding out and staining the wooden stage. The officer hopped off, Reika still in his hand, nearly avoiding another creature that dive-bombed towards him. Two more of his men were cut down, while another pulled out their sword and started slashing away at the creatures. He managed to cut down two that swooped by, but finally one swooped down behind him, pinning him down before biting down on his neck and decapitating him. Reika could see another soldier get bi-sected, before the officer was running off towards a different side of the square. As she hesitantly looked around despite the tight grip on her tentacles that the officer had, Reika couldn't see Eight anywhere.

"_Where is she? She isn't dead, right? No, that's impossible, Eight can't die, not like this...Octarians wouldn't kill other Octarians, right?"_ Reika constantly asked herself. She then tried to look for her sword, as another soldier had been holding the Inkhander for the officer.

"_Where's the Inkhander? Ugh, this night only get worse and worse."_

"Stop squirming you stupid girl!" The officer shouted, hitting her again to make her stop.

"Let me help…" Reika said weakly, spitting some ink aside as a result of the punch to her mouth, "I can help you fight them."

"Like shell you will. Shut up bitch, if anything I should feed you to those beasts, perhaps that's why they've come." The officer said. Suddenly, two of them swooped down, giving off low pitched growls as they closed in on the two. The officer did his best to look brave and stoic, but Reika could easily see past through his act and could see the true fear plastered all over his face. He hoisted her up, pointing Reika towards the beasts as they gnashed their teeth.

"Here you foul beasts, take what you came here for!" The officer shouted in a barbaric tone. But the beasts continued to crawl towards them slowly while the officer did his best to keep some distance between them. Suddenly, one lunged and the officer pulled out his sword, slashing at its throat. The monster fell down, grabbing its own throat as magenta ink gushed out like a fountain. The other lunged forward, but as the officer raised his arm to attack, Reika swung her body backwards and kicked him in the stomach, forcing the officer to drop her. She rolled aside before he could grab her once again, and the soldier could only watch in fear as the monster landed on top of him, clawing away at his body. Reika noticed the officer's sword near her, and since it was a short sword and not really the regular swords carried by usual grunts, it was light enough for her to pick up with her teeth. Reika managed to get herself up, and caught a glimpse as the monster tore away the officer's mid section and started to feed on his guts, his ink sac and stomach falling out onto the ground. She held the sword between her ankles before grabbing it with her hand, and did her best to cut away at the ropes while running from the scene while the monster was distracted with its prey. Finally, her hands were free, and she shook off the small remnants of the rope from her wrists.

"_Hey, this is pretty nice short sword. I mean, it's the one that stabbed me and that insane officer wielded it, but it'll have to do until I find and get the Inkhander back." _Reika said to herself internally. She ran off, watching as monsters flew by and gave chase to any screaming townspeople. She sadly had seen several die, getting cut down and slashed where they had been running. One creature rushed down towards her, but she luckily heard it's bloody roar and stabbed it in the bottom of the jaw, piercing its brain and killing it instantly.

"_Gotta find Eight. Come on Eight, don't die on me, please be alive…"_ Reika thought, frantically running around searching for the Octoling, while avoiding the occasional monster. She really hoped Eight hadn't become a casualty by now, remembering how kind the Octoling was to her in their short friendship so far. Three more monsters swooped down towards Reika, who blocked off their claws with her sword. They all doubled back towards her and landed, running at the girl while screaming primal roars and screams. She continued to block their attacks, occasionally trying to get in a hit of her own on them. She rolled backwards to avoid getting her head bitten off, and when she looked up she could see a large explosion splat one of the monsters, while two soldiers used their spears to skewer the other two. With them was Eight, followed by another soldier who was carrying the Inkhander in his hands, as well as some townspeople.

"Eight, thank cod you're alive! What happened?"

"I was carried off by those three. I managed to convince them to release me and that I could help." Eight explained quickly. More soldiers could be seen in the distance arriving back at the square, fighting off the creatures as they ran. The soldier with the Inkhander handed it to Reika, kneeling at her feet as he did so. Reika immediately recognized him as the one who had arrested both her and Eight at the wall.

"Cuttlefish, please, help us. My fellow comrades and I apologize for our actions before. I know we have no ex-"

"Apology accepted." Reika interrupted abruptly, not really caring for an apology at this moment, "Now gather as much of your men as you can, I'm going to need their help."

"As you wish, madam."

"What happened to him?" Eight asked.

"Who, the crazy nutjob? He got eaten by the monsters while trying to feed me to them instead."

"I guess they thought he looked tastier." Eight joked darkly. Reika was shocked that the shy Octoling was able to make a joke like that, but the thought passed out of her mind as she refocused on getting as much civilians to safety.

"Octarians, incoming!" Reika heard as she quickly helped a family of Inklings get to the safety of a group of soldiers. She turned her head to see a soldier bravely fight off two monsters with his ink sword, but he was swiftly cut down by the arrival of more monsters. After finishing him off, they all reared their heads towards the civilians and soldiers gathered at the center of the town square, with one letting out a vicious scream before they all flew towards them.

"No, we're doomed! RUN!" An Inkling woman screamed, but she was blocked off by one of the soldiers there, who happened to be the same one who gave Reika the short apology.

"Miss, it's best if you remain here. My men will do the best they can to protect you." He reassured, before turning towards the Cuttlefish, who slashed into the torso of one of the eager creatures. "Cuttlefish, what are your orders?"

"_Orders? Since when was I in charge!? I don't even know how to lead a group of soldiers!"_ Reika thought. She looked over to Eight, hoping the Octoling would know a thing or two about leading a group of soldiers, but Eight's blank stare was the same as everyone else's.

"Uh...let's see…" Reika mumbled, looking around. She still had a good amount of soldiers at her disposal, but the townspeople outnumbered the soldiers. She could see that a few of them were equipped with cheap swords, hatchets, and pitchforks, and plenty of weapons laid beside the corpses of dead soldiers on the streets.

"Alright, I want everyone, whether civilian or soldier, with a sword, axe, or any other shorter ranged weapon to be in the front. Anyone with longer weapons like a pitchfork or spear will be behind, and archers behind them. We need to make a circle formation, anyone with a weapon get up here, everyone else needs to stay in the middle. You want to fight, go grab a weapon off the ground." Reika ordered. They all did as they were told, with some brave civilian Inklings taking the weapons of deceased soldiers for their own use. Once everyone was in place, Reika explained to them what they were going to do.

"Okay, you guys at the front will cut the monsters down when they swoop in, swords will get them when they are close, spears and forks, you will take care of the ones they can't reach. Archers, cover the civilians and bring down the ones out of our reach, there's only a few of you so make every shot count!" Reika explained. Everyone yelled out a reply to show they understood her plan, and she turned towards Eight, who was preparing to cast a spell.

"Eight, you ready?"

"Yes. I'm trying to casting a large ink protection spell to shield us from attacks." Eight said, before she silently concentrated and started to chant.

"Better hurry, because here they come." Reika said, and she pulled out the Inkhander. The large tentacle tightened itself around Reika's right arm, and the legendary sword's blade began to glow light green as it coated itself in green ink as usual. However, this time something was different. The green color became noticeably lighter, and the blade produced a bright light.

"Woah...that's different…" Reika muttered. The Octarian creatures hovered above, circling their prey like hungry vultures. After several seconds of circling, one decided to dive down, and soon dozens more followed. As planned, the archers in the crowd fired off several arrows, downing a few of the monsters while more got past. The spears and fork wielders went to work, spearing and stabbing at any monster that flew by, while everyone else with a closer ranged weapon cut them down. At this time, Eight had finished chanting and a circular wall of green ink surrounded the group. A few of the monsters that had attempted a small retreat were splatted as they tried to fly through the wall of death, while some more wary and smarter ones flew upwards and away to safety.

"Wait, green?" Reika asked Eight, who frowned.

"I know...but I couldn't think of a different color than yours…"

"I wasn't even aware you could use different colors…" Reika said.

"I can, but it takes a whole lot of effort out of me. Speaking of which, that spell really drained me." Eight said. Suddenly, a monster swooped down and swiped it's claws at Eight. Fortunately, Reika decapitated it before it could reach her.

"Wow, this blade really cuts through." Reika commented. She slashed at another monster, but missed her mark. Suddenly though, a thin, crescent-shaped projectile shot out of the blade and hit the Octarian, bisecting it. Reika could only stare in disbelief, first at the dead body, and then at her very own weapon.

"Wha...how did I-"

"The Inkhander is specifically great at killing Octarian monsters and withstanding Octarian magic, or so I've read. I'm sure being near all these freaks is what's causing all this power to come out." Eight noted weakly. She was doing her best to keep the barrier up as everyone focused their efforts on defense.

"Nice. Eight, get back behind everyone else and focus on keeping that barrier up."

"Alright...just don't get yourself killed." Eight told the Inkling, squeezing past a few soldiers wielding lances. The numbers of monsters began to dwindle, and soon fewer and fewer were coming down to strike.

* * *

Meanwhile on a rooftop, Luda watched from above.

"Hmph, so it appears our Inkling adversaries are more smarter than I gave them credit for. Let's up the ante, shall we?" Luda said to himself, chuckling as he prepared to summon a stronger monster. Using his powerful Octarian magic, Luda summoned a large armored knight, carrying a giant double-bladed axe.

"Go on, crush their defenses and reduce them all to puddles." Luda commanded.

"As you command, master." The knight replied in a deep echo of a voice. He leapt down from the building, charging forward at Eight's tall barrier at full speed. Raising his axe above his head, he slashed downwards right when he ran at the barrier, splitting a hole into it. The knight then pushed himself through, ignoring the ink that was meant to damage him. Everyone immediately noticed their new enemy, and some trembled in fear at the gigantic foe standing before them.

"Oh carp…" Reika muttered. She turned around to see Eight doing her best to repair the hole and keep the barrier up, as the damage done to it was taking a toll on her friend's body. Reika turned back around towards the armored warrior, and without hesitating for a moment, stepped forward to meet him.

"A Cuttlefish…" The knight echoed ominously, as all monsters would have easily recognized the sword in her hand.

"So, you the leader of this horde?" Reika asked, getting into a stance.

"No, but my master has asked that I crush you and your weak people."

"Try me." Reika taunted. The knight swung first, swinging his axe down at the squid. She leapt out of the way, but the axe hadn't been stuck to the ground as she would have hoped, and the knight took another swing at her. She ducked, but not before a third swing slammed the axe's handle onto her chest, sending her flying through the air before tumbling onto the ground. Reika was on her knees, groaning from the immense pain she could feel all over the front side of her body. She threw up some ink, trying to get herself to stand up and fight.

"Ack...argh...okay, playtime's over." Reika muttered, glaring at her adversary. The soldiers, Eight, and the townspeople stopped all their current work to watch her shuffle towards the knight. Reika looked at her hand to see the Inkhander still glowing bright, and she could feel it shaking erratically and very subtly.

"Alright guys, continue the fight...I'll deal with this beast." Reika ordered, and the soldiers went back to work, chopping up Octavio's monsters. The knight raised his axe and leaned it against his shoulder, bellowing as he said "So Cuttlefish, back for more? Your kind always were lightweights...I will crush you beneath my feet!"

"Not...happening…" Reika replied through heavy breaths. The knight readied his arms for another downwards swing, and Reika watched as his axe slowly rose up into the air. Before he could bring it down on her, Reika reared her arm back, before shooting it forward. The tentacle quickly unraveled itself and shot forward faster than the blink of an eye, whipping the knight in the face. He shouted before stumbling back, the axe falling like a dead weight to his side as he clutched his right eye.

"You're...you're dead!" The knight roared angrily, and Reika moved out of the way of another swing, before repeating the same move, this time striking him in the chest. As their fight continued, she ran circles around them, striking him in various places while he swung blindly, in a desperate attempt to kill her. Finally, she struck the backs of both his leg joints with one slash of her blade, forcing him to fall onto his knees. Reika leapt up, shooting the tentacle of the Inkhander forward to latch herself onto the warrior. The tentacle wrapped itself around his neck, and she dropped back towards the ground, pulling him backwards. The knight began to choke, dropping his axe and grasping his neck, all the while gagging and shouting curses. Reika continued to pull, feeling like her arms were about to snap off thanks to the warrior's heavy armor and large weight. Finally, the knight slammed onto his back painfully, tentacle still strangling him when Reika leapt onto his chest.

"N-no...must kill-"

"Not today, you won't. I win this time." Reika cut him off, holding the Inkhander so that the blade faced downwards as she raised her arms high above her head. The knight stretched an arm forward to try and grab her, but he was too weak to move any more before she brought the sword down onto his chest. Right when the sword's blade pierced the warrior's armor, magenta ink shot out like a geyser, spraying everywhere. The sword reacted to the chaos, splashing green ink all over the wound as Reika shoved the sword deeper into his chest. Finally, she pushed forward and made the gash larger, and more of the magenta ink started to gush out and spill all over the chestplate. She could feel the different colors land onto her skin and clothes, her face drenched in a mix of pink and green. Finally, the fountain of ink stopped, and knight stopped moving. A large puddle of pink ink seeped out of the armor, while a weak Reika fell to her knees. The Inkhander fell out of her hand and slid off the corpse, while its owner fell forward, falling unconscious onto the large flow of ink on the chest of the corpse, only feeling pain ricocheting throughout her body…

* * *

Luda had watched the whole battle, start to finish. He watched as his knight walked in, smacked around a squid before getting killed. Only once had he seen the flashes, the glow and sensed the power from the person who fought his warrior. Luda looked up into the orange sky of dawn, watching the rest of his monsters as evening began to fade away. The sun crept up from the horizon slowly, and it's light began to reveal a large amount of corpses, a mix between dead Inkling soldiers and civilians, as well as an insane amount of Octarian monsters. It appeared Luda was defeated, his army reduced to a small amount of monsters, most of them too injured to fly or fight. Yet, despite his losses, Luda couldn't help but smile.

"It appears, I've found the Cuttlefish...Lord Octavio will most certainly be pleased…" Luda mumbled, before he used a spell to teleport away, leaving the rest of his army for dead.

* * *

Reika opened her eyes groggily, her head throbbing the instant her consciousness returned. She felt dizzy, and her vision remained blurry until she opened her eyes completely. She found herself in a room. The room itself was empty, with only a single large window and two chairs across from her. There was a small nightstand near her bed, with a candle that was not lit. On one of the chairs was Eight, who had fallen asleep with her head reared back.

"What the…" Reika mumbled, although she couldn't really tell what she herself was saying. The noise she made as she rose from the bed was enough to wake up the Octoling, who jolted up from her seat, eyes wide.

"Three, you're okay!" Eight exclaimed, running over to her friend. Reika grabbed her own head, rubbing the back where she could still feel some pain.

"Yeah, I'm up. What...what happened?"

"We won! You killed that gigantic knight, while the rest of us finished off Octavio's forces! We won, all thanks to you!"

"Me? Oh come on, don't give me that kind of credit." Reika argued, much to the annoyance of the Octoling.

"We had many casualties, mostly from the beginning when everyone ran, but a lot of people were saved thanks to your help. You should be proud."

"And yet, I still don't feel too keen on the idea that an angry, powerful wizard wants to kill me and nearly wiped out a whole town for it." Reika said, trying to hold back a laugh when the Octoling just glared at her. "Oh alright, I'm happy we won and that we didn't end up dead. So, what about the soldiers…"

"They won't report us. That nice one you talked to is in command temporarily, since the crazy one is dead."

"Heh, well that's a relief." Reika said, getting up from her bed. She stretched and yawned, looking down as she did so to notice that her stab wound was healed, and no longer was there any pain coming from there. Reika grabbed her jacket and weapons, putting them all on while Eight followed close behind.

"Where to?"

"Anywhere far away from this place and maybe from civilization."

"Why? Shouldn't we be heading to another town, or traveling anywhere to help people?" Eight asked, suggesting something that the Inkling didn't want to do. She groaned, before turning around to face her friend.

"Look, you saw what happened last night. People died because of me, because some angry wizard wants to kill me. I don't know about you, but what's there for them to be happy about? I caused the monsters to come to their homes and attack simply by being here. Watch, I'm going to walk outside and get pelted with rotten fruit and street waste." Reika said grumpily. Eight sighed in defeat, seeing that Three had once again reverted back to wanting to run away from everything around her. Right when they opened the doors to the outside, both girls weren't surprised to find a large crowd of people. However, what surprised Reika was what the people were there for. Nobody was throwing stones or rotten fruit, nobody was jeering and threatening them. In fact, they could hear joyful praise and encouraging cheers. The whole scene stunned Reika, who just stood there, frozen in shock, while Eight stood behind her, looking at the crowd of people with a knowing smile.  
_"These people...how could they not be angry? Why aren't they rioting the streets, trying to kill or hurt me? They're...they're cheering, for me? No, this isn't right, stop! I'm the one who caused this, I'm the one to blame!"_ Reika thought as she walked down the stairs. At the front of the crowd was the soldier from before, clapping with many others when she arrived.

"Good to see you are healed and rested, Cuttlefish. The townspeople, my men, and myself want to thank you for saving us last night. WIthout your help, we surely would have been decimated by our foes."

"N-no...you really shouldn't be thanking me…"

"Why not? Without your tactical skills and combat expertise, we surely wouldn't have held our ground as well." The soldier insisted.

"_Tactical skills? Combat expertise? Doesn't sound like me."_ Reika thought.

"See Three? Everyone is thankful you saved them! Look at them cheer, look at them shouting your name in praise. They need you, we all need your help." Eight said, and the soldier nodded in agreement. Reika sighed, and looked around the crowd. All she could see were smiles everywhere, plastered on every face visible to her. The whole sea of people that crowded the streets just to see her walk outside, completely healthy and healed up, it all felt wrong to her. Yet, something about the whole scene made her feel good, and she could feel something form in her heart, something that felt nice and comforting. In the midst of all this, Reika couldn't help but smile, and no matter how many times she internally told herself she didn't deserve this, she couldn't help but keep smiling.

"Okay, maybe I was wrong. I-I guess people really do appreciate me being here, despite everything that's happened. But this celebration, this trust they have in me for some reason, it won't be anywhere else…"

"Then give them a reason to trust in you." The soldier interjected. "There's no doubt Octavio's forces are planning to hit other neighboring towns and cities. I realize the King has a large influence over Mollusca and how he wants you hunted in order to satisfy our enemy, but I'm sure there's plenty of people who believe in you and your family line to save them. Perhaps, you can help them as well, just as you have helped us." He suggested.

"You're right. I guess I should be helping more people...cod, I'm so stupid…"

"I beg to differ. Your excellent strategy last night served us well, and we minimized the casualties we would probably have gotten had you not helped us. Again, thank you Cuttlefish." The soldier said, bowing to her. The formal gesture was embarrassing her, and she blushed at the thought of people ever bowing to her like a leader or a queen.

"Thank you, sir." Eight said, and the soldier rose up and smiled at them both. Eight gave her friend a wink, which made her want to die right there.

"_Oh Great Zapfish, please save me…"_ Reika thought. The rest of the day continued, with the town celebrating their victory, and with Reika being the town's center of attention. They celebrated, partied, and Reika learned the soldier's name was Allen when she thanked him for all his help. Reika eventually suggested Eight stay in the town and not follow her, hoping the Octoling would live out the rest of her life in peace. Reika couldn't imagine going into new places and having to put Eight through the heavy risk of getting hurt. Eight probably wanted to stay away from all that trouble, and live somewhere more peacefully without harm. When she told her, Eight reluctantly agreed, and Reika decided it was time to leave town. It was now around the middle of the day, and Allen and the rest of his men readied a seahorse and wagon for Reika, giving her enough supplies to travel on the road until she reached a village or town, whichever was down the road first. Outside the walls, Reika prepared to leave, getting up onto the carriage when Eight ran up to her.

"Hey, wait for me!" Eight shouted, thankful her friend hadn't already departed. Her presence confused Reika, who was certain the Octoling was going to stay behind.

"Eight? You aren't going to stay? The town doesn't seem to have a problem with you anymore, since you helped save them and all."

"I-I want to follow you." Eight said.

"Why? You know it's dangerous, and who knows what else could happen. You could die, and I just don't know if I should be dragging you along and putting you in so much danger like this."

"I want to go though, I want to help you fight him. I know that wherever we might go next risks being another deathtrap for me, but I also know that it's not any better for you either. That's why I've decided not to let you go alone, so I can help you in any way possible. You need my help, admit it." Eight argued. Reika could see the Octoling was serious, and she sighed, knowing nothing she could do would change the Octoling's mind.

"Well alright fine, hop on in."

"Yay!" Eight exclaimed, happily going in the back of the wagon.

"You really want to though? That public execution last night, the fires...you aren't scared?" Reika asked. Eight looked down at the floor of the wagon, pondering on the question for a few seconds before answering.

"I'm a little bit scared. But I know that you'll be there for me."

"Yeah, guess you're right." Reika said, smiling to her new friend. Once the wagon had enough necessary supplies, the duo left the town, waving goodbye to the many people at the gate until the town and it's walls disappeared over the hills and the horizon.

* * *

**Yeah, again, sorry for the long wait. This chapter is a bit short, but I'll probably do a mix of long and short chapters tbh. Anyways, thanks for reading my stuff and be sure to leave a review or follow this story for future chapters.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Herring**

**New chapter! And the plot thickens, as the King's days are numbered and he is nowhere close to capturing Three or the Inkhander, all the while Octavio's army of monsters seems to be growing only more stronger as they prepare for a full out war! Hopefully you didn't mind the wait for this one, but don't worry as more things should be coming along the way! Enjoy!**

* * *

Luda returned to his master's castle in a matter of seconds, arriving right at the front gates. He was immediately welcomed by two spear knights, who saluted the man as they opened the front gate and let him through. It didn't take long for him to reach the meeting hall, where many Elite Octoling warriors, Cobias, and Octavio were located. As he approached, he could hear a loud ocean of arguments and debates. The noises got louder and louder with each step he took, until he opened the large double doors that lead into the meeting hall. Immediately, all arguments were ceased, and everyone watched silently as the mage walked in.

"Greetings, my Lord and his fellow warriors."

"Luda, you're back quickly. Report." Octavio demanded. The Octoling was already familiar with the routine, and willingly gave his report with all sincerity.

"My liege, the attack on Myopsida was...unsuccessful, to say the least. Our whole horde was killed in the ensuing battle." Luda said.

"How? A town such as that would have fallen to my beasts, even with highly trained soldiers present. Your orders were to take the town, and leave no survivors."

"It wasn't just highly trained soldiers, my liege. Your beasts managed to kill quite the amount of people, including soldiers, but another was there…" Luda said. A grin slowly crept onto his face as he watched Octavio's face, which changed slowly to a grim glare as the older Octarian wizard realized what he meant.

"Cuttlefish…"

"Not only that, my lord, but I could sense magic being used during the battle. Octarian magic." This last detail certainly piqued Octavio's interest, and the Octarian leader's eyes widened once he heard the mention of Octarian magic.

"Are you certain it was Octarian magic you sensed was being used in that battle?"

"Yes, my lord, I couldn't have been wrong. As a skilled magic user under Octarian sorcery, the power derived from these arts fell so familiar and welcoming to me. Of course I would recognize it, it's unmistakable."

"My daughter...she has returned then."

"Perhaps, but something felt off compared to early records about her. The magic used, it was very simplistic and basic. A simple barrier spell, as far as I could tell." Luda explained.

"Simple magic? My daughter is skilled in using spells, I do not understand why such weak spells would be used." Octavio muttered as he started to remember the battles he had against her.

"Maybe it isn't her. Maybe she's been killed during your years of absence, possibly by the King after he exiled the Cuttlefish family. After all, I'm sure she wouldn't be too fond of the royal hierarchy murdering her friends."

"Don't be ridiculous Luda, a powerful Octarian such as her would not be caught by mere Inklings." An Elite jeered.

"Perhaps she's grown soft. Became too trusting with those bastards." Another Elite mocked.

"I would not underestimate her, my lord. Your very own daughter is a powerful Octarian, and has assisted in your defeat before." Cobias noted, turning towards his leader. He could see Octavio's anger start to rise, and if steam could come out of one's ears, it would be bursting out of the man's ear drums by now.

"Sir, perhaps we should focus on eliminating her first." An Elite added.

"She could prove a threat if we aren't careful, especially when allied with a Cuttlefish warrior." Another Elite said.

"Perhaps she was saving her strength. After all, I wouldn't want to waste powerful magic on such simple creatures of the night myself." Luda theorized smugly, pointing to himself as he said so.

"SILENCE!" Octavio boomed, grabbing everyone's attention and startling them all as his voice echoed across the hall. "Let us get back to the main topic at hand, without any further interruptions." Octavio said, and the Elites all turned to look at Octavio. Octavio stared at Luda, his gaze burning with anger into Luda's retina.

"Luda, you are dismissed." Octavio ordered calmly, and Luda bowed before walking away. Once he left the meeting room and closed the doors behind himself, he smiled. He loved the angry reactions and glares Octavio was giving off as they talk about his daughter. Luda could tell Octavio still loved his daughter, despite how the old octopus would act. He could see Octavio start to boil at the mere mention of the Inklings possibly murdering his only remaining living relative. Yet, Luda had his doubts that the Octarian using magic to assist the Inklings back in battle was not her. However, to confirm his theory, he would need to visit the King, the man who would really know the true answers to his questions.

* * *

The morning was peaceful that day. The birds were chirping, the sun was shining. Everything felt and looked calm, like a children's tale. The plains that surrounded a dirt path were mostly silent. A soft breeze would pass by, blowing the grass and making them sway side to side. The wildflowers that were blooming among the grass were open to the sun, their petals shining from the morning dew, all the while some butterflies flew from flower to flower. It was such a peaceful day, such a peaceful morning that all but helped to hide the chaos that was brewing within the lands of Mollusca. On the dirt road was Reika and Eight, riding their wagon down the road. Where they would stop, neither had a clue. A town, maybe a simple farming village, or perhaps a city even. Reika was in the front, guiding the seahorse that pulled the wagon across, while Eight laid in the back with the supplies. The Octoling looked out the back of the wagon, admiring the peaceful setting around her.

"It's so beautiful…" Eight whispered to herself. She then turned to Three, who looked exhausted and tired from guiding their stubborn seahorse. "Don't you think so, Three?"

"Hmm?" The Inkling muttered as a response. She was currently tired, as the dumb animal in front of her would often refuse to listen to her commands. It would snort at her or even huff like it was complaining, and this frustrated the Inkling. She was tired, annoyed, and was hardly even paying attention to the scenery around her. "Uh, what'd you ask again?"

"I said the plains look beautiful, and then I asked if you agreed. Do you?" Eight repeated.

"Uh, yeah, I guess they look fine? I mean, it's a lot of grass and flowers and stuff, so…" Reika began to say. Eight simply stared at her friend, an annoyed look on her face before she reverted back to staring outside.

Suddenly, the wagon made an abrupt stop, startling the two. Eight was knocked over, and a few of the supplies falling from their neat stacks onto the ground. Reika let out a small yelp as she pulled back on the reigns, before scolding the animal in front of her.

"Cod damn seahorse, what the shell…" Reika scolded, before looking behind her to check on her friend. "Eight, you good?"

"Y-yeah...just bumped my head a bit. What happened? Why'd you stop?" Eight questioned.

"Wasn't me, it was the seahorse. He seemed to be frightened by something, but I don't know what. There's nothing ahead of us but empty road." Reika complained. They decided to get off, with Reika checking on the wagon's condition while Eight checked on the seahorse. She pet the animal gently, but it still seemed resistant to her affection for it. In the distance however, Eight could hear footsteps. And they weren't going slow either. It only took her one look at the seahorse's frightened eyes and the road in front of them to see why they stopped.

"Uh, Three…"

"What is it? Did you figure out why it stopped?" Three asked, standing up from examining the wheels.

"Yeah...I think that's why." Eight exclaimed, pointing at a group of Inkling horsemen charging at them. There were about seven of them, with bows aimed at the two.

"Carp." Three muttered, pulling the Inkhander out while Eight readied a spell, both preparing for a tough skirmish.

* * *

**Previously, Inkopolis City...**

The King sat on his throne, his head leaning on one of his arms as he contemplated his current situation. There were now only three days left to search for either the Cuttlefish girl or her sword, and neither have been spotted. He hadn't heard back from his son ever since he departed, and recent news of an attack on a town hadn't helped. He was starting to stress out over the situation. It also didn't help that the neighboring countries of Tilapia and Pesci weren't very happy to hear that Octavio would be taking their lands as "compensation" for part of the peace treaty he's been trying to work out. Despite the fact Mollusca was several times more powerful and larger than the lords and their countries, they still pestered the King over the act, even criticizing him for sending over some of his troops into their , everything was not looking good at all for the King. His head shot up when he heard the doors slam open, and in came a lowly soldier. The soldier was carrying a sheet of paper rolled up like a scroll, and he bowed to his leader while the King's elite guards walked over and retrieved the message from him.

"Sir, I have urgent news! A message came from the trading town of Myopsida. The Cuttlefish girl, she's been spotted there!"  
"What!?" The King bellowed, nearly leaping out of his seat. "Are you certain this is true?"

"Yes sir, I'm certain. There was an Octarian attack on Myopsida, apparently having been prevented by the Cuttlefish leading your troops, your majesty."

"I've heard the attack happened...but I wasn't aware it was prevented…" The King said. After one of the guards beside him evaluated the paper, he handed it to the King, who whispered his thanks before looking over it himself. "This report...who wrote it?"

"One of the officers that arrived to Myopsida early at dawn. The troops already there said their superior was killed in battle, so one of the soldiers was filling in."

"And they hadn't bothered to capture the Cuttlefish?" The King asked. He was growing disappointed in the soldiers assigned there, as the whole point many of them had been sent to several towns all across

"Yes sir, they actually have. But they released her when she promised to aid in fighting off Octavio's monsters." The soldier jumped back in fear when the usually calm King slammed his fist against the armrest in anger.

"Argh, right when I had her…" The King muttered under his breath, so quiet that only the guards could hear him. He then glared at the soldier still standing before him. "Go and tell the new troops and their superior to arrest the soldiers stationed there during the attack. I will decide what to do with them at a later time."

"B-but sir, they seemed to only be-"

"JUST GO!" The King bellowed angrily, slamming his fist once again, while pointing to the doors that lead outside the throne room. The soldier whimpered and cowered in front of his King, trying to say something back, only to have some quiet and silent noises escape his mouth.

"Y-yes sir...on it sir." He muttered fearfully, walking back towards the doors. As he neared them, the doors opened, and in walked Luda, alone. The King sat back in his seat, staring Luda down as the cocky Octarian sorcerer walked down the neat carpeted path. The soldier just stared in fear at the sight of an Octarian, before running off to fulfill his King's orders.

"You...again." The King muttered breathlessly.

"Ah yes, me. Your friendly resident Octarian negotiator, at your service. Tell me, how's life treating you, your Majesty? I hope that loud shout I heard when walking over here was of joy?" Luda asked the King, who didn't seem very amused.

"What...does he want." The King asked, almost breathlessly.

"Oh, that. Well, he says he isn't happy to hear that the girl is alive, or the fact that your soldiers decided to ally themselves with her."

"They were fighting off monsters. The Cuttlefish was simply doing something similar. Your leader is attacking my towns, my villages, and slaughtering my people. How could you expect me to stand for it?" The King interrogated.

"Well, you could just let SOME people die. After all, thinning out the population doesn't seem too bad of an idea, and think about it, overpopulation won't be a-"

"Just get to the point."

"Octavio is unhappy with your failure to capture the sword, and I've come to remind you that you only have three days, including today might I add, to get the sword and hand it to him. Once those days have passed, he will forget about the whole peace relations work, and just destroy you." Luda said.

"I understand his frustration...but I too am frustrated at this point...I've been doing the best I can to find a way our species can possibly live in peace. Even though the lords of other lands can't understand my motives, all that matters is that peace is restored. Perhaps I can negotiate with Octavio for more time, or possibly, some help in this search."

"Perhaps, although knowing the man himself, he probably isn't too keen on being on speaking terms with your kind." Luda said. But that wasn't the only reason he had come to Inkopolis. Luda had his own mission in mind, and he had come to visit the King to get answers.

"Now, I don't want to trouble you, but I do have a question, one I'm certain only you can answer." Luda said. The King perked up, listening intently to the Octoling. "Oh, and could we not have 'eavesdroppers' here?" Luda said, subtly referring to the King's guards. WIthout even giving so much as a glance towards them, the King simply said "leave us", and the guard obediently left without a word, their armored boots clacking against the hard floor, before the doors closed behind them. There, Luda stood alone with the King, and he continued to stare down the Octarian, wanting to know more of what this man wanted.

"Continue."

"I was wondering if you could tell me what happened to Octavio's daughter? According to ancient texts, she has aided the Cuttlefish family in defeating her father before. I'm sure she wasn't too fond of you exiling The Cuttlefish family from their homes and raiding their village, so you must have done something to get her out of the picture."

"And why do you ask?"

"Well, I just so happened to have a 'friend', yes, a friend who was present at Myopsida during the battle. Rumor has it, an Octoling was seen helping the girl fight off the Octarian monsters." Luda explained. The King was dumbfounded. An Octarian helping the Cuttlefish girl? It was a strange occurrence, as Reika had never even seen an Octarian before, as far as the King knew from watching her grow. She learned about them at the schools he sent her to of course, but never in person. The battle at Myopsida would have been the first encounter, and yet...how come she didn't kill it? How come she allied herself with an Octarian when all her life she's heard how evil they were? A familiar name had come up in his mind, but he quickly dismissed his own theory as ridiculous and improbable.

"This isn't important, I have more serious matters at hand and-"

"And it IS important, because it can shed more light on these current matters, and possibly help you figure out what the best course of action is. I already told you about the Octarian helping that renegade girl. Let's say this WAS Octavio's daughter, and she managed to return from whatever you put her in. Tell me, how much of a disaster would it be for you, if she were to return? Imagine the Cuttlefish girl getting a strong ally like that, imagine how much harder it would be to appease Octavio and fulfill his demands with her in the picture." Luda inquired. The King fell silent, thinking hard about Luda's point. A devilish smile crept onto Luda's face as he watched the King think, satisfied with how his argument was tearing away at the King's mind. Finally, the King of Inkopolis sighed, and stared at Luda dead in the eyes before telling him:

"I guess it wouldn't hurt to inform you, but only because as my Octarian negotiator for peace, I'm hoping you can help me solve this and bring peace to this world."

"Excellent! I would love to know all about it, so please, enlighten me your Majesty, tell me what happened, and where she is." Luda said in a cocky attitude, annoying the ruler as he prepared to share.

"I locked her away, deep in The Abyss, surrounded by a labyrinth. When Octavio was defeated, many leaders came to my father, who was king at the time, telling him stories of horror of what happened to their lands. It was just...just unspeakable. The more we listened to them, the more we all realized how unnecessary this feud between the Cuttlefish family and Octavio was. Octavio's daughter, whom I refuse to name, tried to stop him. She tried to save them…" The King told Luda. "My father ordered me and several of his own generals to devise a trap for her. She fell for it, quite easily, but that didn't stop her from giving us a tough fight. I lost many men to her, until I finally took her down with power from the Great Zapfish, harvested earlier that day and forged into my blade. The Cephalon Church was in charge of sealing her away in a stone prison, made inescapable by submerging it in blessed ink and guarded with holy magic."

"How fascinating, your Majesty. Your father, what were his thoughts on the Octarians?"

"After Octavio's defeat? He just wanted it to end. He gathered so many powerful rulers, and together they decided to bring peace between us and your kind. A shame we hadn't thought about the idea of Octavio rising again once more, a hundred years later. My father would pass, and I would become king. And here I am, continuing his goal for peace."

"A valiant effort, might I add."

"Thank you for your kindness, Luda, was it?" The King asked, and Luda nodded, showing he was correct on the name.

"'Well, that should be everything I needed. It was nice talking to you, your Majesty, perhaps we can speak once more." Luda said, walking away from the throne and towards the doors.

"Wait." The King's voice boomed, echoing through the empty room. They were the only two there, making the echo all the more intimidating.

"Luda, days ago, you suggested I protect the Inkhander from the Cuttlefish, and that I defend my land from Octavio myself. And now that he's become powerful once again, I decided to try my luck with the man, seeing as how he unites the Octarians simply in presence alone, and you said nothing of it. In fact, you've helped me by willingly acting as my negotiator. Why the sudden change?" The King asked. Luda had not expected the man to question him on such a fact. He began to scold himself silently, in utter disbelief that he could have overlooked such a detail and realized the contradictions of the advice he had given. Luda needed to think of something to say, and fast, if he wanted to keep his head intact.

"Well, I simply just saw the same benefits you did! Heheh...well, perhaps I realized fighting Octavio was more riskier than trying to negotiate a peaceful resolution? I think if we play our cards right, fate will look to be in your favor, your Majesty."

"Very well. You are dismissed."

"Thank you for your valuable time, King." Luda said, bowing for one final time before he exited the castle and teleported back to Octavio's castle.

* * *

**Later...**

A large green tentacle whipped forward towards a calvary rider, slapping him off his animal and launching the poor man into a tree. Another soldier drew two arrows from his quiver, aiming carefully before firing them off towards the duo. Eight responded with a makeshift ink barrier, stopping the arrows from killing Reika, who was now in a fierce one-on-one with a soldier wielding a short sword. The soldier tried to stab her twice, missing both times as Reika batted his weapon away and parried. She then spun around quickly, the momentum gathering up as she swung her arms fully across her body. This whipped the Inkhander's tentacle towards the soldier's head, slashing across his eye and blinding him. Whatever parts of his eye were left flew in all sorts of directions like crushed Jello, as he grabbed his face and screamed in pain. Another soldier brought his broadsword downwards, but Eight managed to blast him away with an explosion of ink.

"Where did these guys come from?" Eight asked.

"How should I know, I'm just as surprised as you." Reika replied breathlessly, stabbing the soldier from the blast in the gut. The blade pierced right through his body and chestplate, killing him. A volley of arrows flew towards them, and Reika quickly used the dead man as a meat shield, covering herself as the arrows began to pierce his body and embed themselves on the surface.

"Carp, how many are there?"

"Only four left standing, we should be able to take them." Eight said, looking up from a rock she hid behind to avoid arrows. The Octoling said it so confidently, despite the fact that Reika was somewhat struggling against the swarm of arrows that constantly flew at her direction, all the while she had been trying to avoid another wound from a blade.

"You sure about that?"

"We took on a small army of monsters and you fought a gigantic armored warrior with a giant axe. We can do this." Eight said confidently, smiling to her friend.

"Alright, if you say so." Reika said, and she charged forward the moment she saw the soldiers trying to reload. She tossed the body aside, raising the Inkhander up and slashing down. The motion released a long stream of ink that landed in a straight line across the ground, allowing Reika to swim across at a fast pace.

"The Cuttlefish, she's coming!" One soldier exclaimed, pointing at Reika in squid form, swimming through the ink.

"Shoot her where she stands! Don't let her cut you down!" Another shouted. They readied their bows, aiming at the Inkling.

"_Carp, they're already done rearming their bows! Just a little bit more-"_ Reika thought, right as an arrow landed inches away from her on the grass.

"_Holy carp, they're shooting again! Come on, come on!"_ Reika told herself. She dodged the rest of the arrows, with one of the soldiers being shot by Eight's magic projectiles. One of the soldiers smiled confidently, lining up his shot perfectly just as Reika formed out of the ink and back into her more humanoid shape. The arrow was now aiming right at her head, right for a killing blow. Reika could see it too, and so could Eight, as both could only watch in horror as he pulled his string back and prepared to let go. Everything happened so fast, faster than anyone at the field could have imagined. Faster than the blink of an eye, a fast, skinny unknown object flew through the sky and shot through the soldier's arm. He yelled in agony, letting go of the bow string and shooting his arrow as well. However, his other arm had now been thrown off balance, and when it fired, the arrow instead embedded itself onto Reika's left shoulder. She could feel an incredibly sharp pain shooting through her shoulder and parts of her bicep, yelling out to Eight for help as she fell to the ground. Eight screamed at Reika, watching her friend tumble to the ground. The soldiers on the other hand, had watched their comrade get shot by an arrow from an unknown assailant. One of them, without hesitating, drew out his sword and charged at the downed Reika, unsheathed her own short sword from her belt. Just as he started to run, this soldier was shot in the head, the arrow fling right across his brain. He dropped dead quickly, and Reika used the confusion to her advantage. As she tried to ignore the pain from her wound, she ran over and cleaved one of the soldiers with her short sword, before disarming the other, literally, and stabbing him in the chest. When all was done, all that was left was a few dead seahorses, some living ones as well, seven dead soldiers, and weapons strewn about. There were puddles of ink, splotches of it all around the grass. The wagon and their seahorse remained alive however, the supplies also intact. Eight quickly ran to her friend's side, a panicked expression on her face.

"A-are you okay?"

"Y-yeah, I'm alive...just that there's an arrow in my shoulder and it burns like hell."

"O-okay, here, let me pull it out!" Eight said, grabbing the arrow with her hand and beginning to slowly rip it from her friend's body. Reika turned and bit down on the leather glove that she wore on her right hand, releasing a muffled scream of pain as she felt the deadly stick was ripped from her shoulder, which was now excessively bleeding.

"Here, I'll heal you, it should lessen the pain like last time."

"Thank cod…" Reika muttered, her voice shaking slightly. She had been shot with arrows before, remembering the day when she was being chased out of Inkopolis by the King's guards. She remembered being shot in the leg, how her ink bled all over underneath her armor and just sloshed around. The feeling was painful, and quite irritating now that she thought about it. But the prior experience didn't make this one any less painful either. Reika then stared at the dead soldier, the one who was so close to killing her. She could see another arrow, the one that killed him, lying on the ground near his body.

"Hey Eight, did you see where that arrow came from?"

"Y-yeah, I think so...whoever shot him saved you."

"Yeah...wonder who it was…" Reika said, her voice still shaky.

"It came from over there, by that lone tree I think." Eight said, pointing to a small tree in the distance. Reika looked over, but couldn't see anything there. That is, until a figure dropped down from the tree and ran over to the two. As it got closer, the "figure" turned out to be another Inkling. She was shorter than both Eight and Three, with short yellow tentacles to match her height. Her outfit appeared to be simple village clothes, like those that belonged to a farm girl. She had a quiver strapped across her body, filled with a decent amount of ink arrows, as well as a simply-made wooden bow in her hand. A dagger was sheathed to her belt as well.

"Oh my cod, are you guys okay? Oh carp, I hope she's not dead." She frantically asked them.

"I-I'm...I'm not dead...ow." Reika announced, wincing in pain as she got up. The pain was starting to recede thanks to Eight's magic, and she simply just shook it off and did her best to ignore it. Eight walked over behind her, picking the Inkhander up from the ground.

"So...I'm guessing you're the one who shot that?"

"Yep! Thank cod you're still alive, I thought for a second the guy killed you!" The girl exclaimed in a chirpy voice.

"Thanks, for saving me." Reika said. She glanced back, seeing Eight attempting to calm down their seahorse after the chaos that ensued just minutes before.

"No problem! Anything for the legendary Cuttlefish!"

"Legendary?" Reika asked, confused now.

"Yeah! You have the Inkhander, right? The sword that could decimate hundreds of Octarian monsters with one blow!" The girl said.

"Uh…I mean, I wouldn't consider myself legendary…" Reika argued.

"But you are! You are a Cuttlefish! You must be the one that the King is looking for! Oh man, this is so awesome, to actually meet a Cuttlefish in the flesh!"

"Uh...sure? I mean, I'm glad I'm not dead…" Reika muttered. Eight was now handing her the Inkhander. The girl was confused, eyeing Eight suspiciously. Eight felt uncomfortable seeing the Inkling gaze directed at her, scooting away soon after to hopefully hide behind Reika.

"Wait...your friend, she's not an Inkling?" The girl asked. Both Reika and Eight froze where they stood, as neither knew how they should answer. Should they tell the girl the truth and risk having her freak out, or should they tell her a small lie in the hopes of possibly not having Eight end up dead? The decision was hard, and the girl was armed as well. If things went south, then things could turn for the worse, and neither Reika nor Eight wanted to hurt this girl.

"Why do you say that?" Reika asked.

"Well, she kinda looks different, that's all." The girl said. Not wanting to insult the girl and possibly angering the Cuttlefish standing before her, she quickly sputtered "Not that it's a bad thing, different is good!" Eight simply just stood there, still hiding behind Reika.

"Uh...she's...she's definitely an Inkling! Yeah, she just has a really unique hairstyle, that's all! Nothing too different from what you would usually see." Reika said, making a hand gesture that tried to imitate outlining Eight's tentacles.

"Woah, really? Cool! Nice hairdo you got, it looks fresh." The girl complimented Eight, who just hid her face away while Reika stared in disbelief.

"_Wait, she actually bought that? Wow, Inklings are stupid."_ Reika thought to herself. She realized this also insulted her own intelligence, and she just wanted to crawl into a hole an die at the moment.

"So, where are you going, Miss Cuttlefish?" The girl asked, her eyes gleaming with excitement. Reika couldn't tell whether this was good or bad, and Eight remained silent, hidden behind her friend.

"Well, my friend and I were just traveling from a town a bit of a distance from here, and we were trying to reach maybe another town or even a small village."

"Oh, funny thing, my village is not far from here! Here, I can help you fix your wagon up over there and lead you to it!"  
"Uh, you sure? I don't want to cause any trouble. You don't have to do this, we can just-" Reika said, concerned, before being tugged by her jacket. She glanced over her shoulder to see Eight, who whispered something about needing to stop at a town for supplies and a place to rest.

"No problem! The villagers that live with me are super nice and welcoming, and in fact they look up to the Cuttlefish family as heroes! Trust me, if there's one place that was completely safe from the King's hunt, it's here! So what do you say, could you come to my village?" The girl explained, before asking the two to visit. Reika looked over to Eight, wondering whether the Octoling felt safe enough to go to another Inkling settlement. Eight just shrugged, and didn't seem at all frightened, so Reika turned back towards the Inkling girl in front of her.

"Alright, my friend seems to think it's fine, so I guess it couldn't hurt…"

"Great! I'll help you guys pack and we can go!" The girl exclaimed happily, leaping into the air as she ran over to their wagon. Reika watched her go about her way, surprised she hadn't tried to take the two in for the massive reward rumored to be going around for her capture. She felt Eight tap her on the shoulder, and when she looked over, she could see Eight pointing at the dead soldiers. Their bodies were now starting to turn into puddles of ink, and their weapons all just laid on the ground, scattered by the bodies.

"What should we do with them?" Eight asked.

"What do you mean? They're dead, just leave them."

"Leave their bodies all over like that?" Eight asked again for clarification.

"Yeah. Don't expect a burial, we aren't carrying shovels and we already wasted time just fighting them." Reika said. She could see the Octoling felt guilty just leaving the dead where they lie, and Reika felt the guilt start to pass onto her the more she stared at them.

"Look Eight, I know burying them would be respectful and all that, especially since they were my comrades, but we don't have time. We need to use the time we have right now to save the most people we can and defeat Octavio, just like you told me back at Myopsida."

"I guess you're right. Let's go." Eight said, agreeing with her in a defeated tone. Eight left to go help their new friend with the supplies and repairs, while Reika looked back and muttered a quiet "sorry" to the dead men. It didn't take long for them to get back on the dirt path, and they rode down towards the girl's village.

* * *

Surprisingly to the two of them, the girl hadn't lied, and the village she spoke of was much closer than they realized. Eight looked on the map given to her, realizing the village was hardly noted down anywhere near the path where it was located. If they hadn't run into the village girl prior to their trip, they probably would have rode right past. The village itself was a small farming village, nothing big or glamourous. The houses were made of simple materials such as stone and wood and they dotted the land. Most of the land was covered in tall grassy plains, with wooden fences blocking off sections where the livestock would roam, or where crops would grow. Trees were scattered around, but never got too thick and forest-like. Due to the small size of the village, there were less people roaming around as well. As she watched, Reika seemed to notice how everyone greeted each other and acted as though they were all family. It made her think of what her family's village would have looked like.

"_I wonder if this is what Calamari County was like. Maybe I should ask Callie or Marie one day."_ Reika thought. The wagon finally made a stop near a house, and the yellow tentacled Inkling leapt out from the back as she was greeted by more Inklings.

"Mom, Dad, I'm baaaack!" She exclaimed, rushing over to hug the two older squids at the entrance. They reciprocated her affection, returning the hug and smiles. Eight jumped out of the wagon, Reika soon following behind. It didn't take long for the family and some other Inklings to notice the strangers.

"Mom, Dad, look who I found! It's the new Cuttlefish, the one who's going to stop Octavio!" She exclaimed happily. The parents walked over to them, carefully observing their looks and appearance. The father then noticed the Inkhander equipped on Reika's back, and gave her a smile.

"Well well, nice to meet a valiant hero such as yourself, Miss Cuttlefish." He said, reaching out his hand for a handshake. Reika gave the man the handshake, noticing he had an iron-strong grip.

"The name's Henry Boldt. And your friend over there, who might she be?"

"Oh uh...I call her Eight."

"Eight? Interesting name. Nice to meet you, 'Eight', welcome to our village. You are welcome to stay as long as you want, you are safe here." Henry noted. Reika somehow felt a sense of relief, despite never having visited a small village like this before. She was so used to Inkopolis, with the thousands of people that lived there, the streets bustling with activity. Myopsida was more or less the same, despite not being as large. Yet, something about the simple, quiet village felt nice. It was a relaxing break from the large populations of the bigger towns and cities, and she felt safer here. Reika couldn't speak for Eight, but could tell the Octoling wasn't being as timid as she was at Myopsida.

"Hey, how about I show you two around?" The village girl offered kindly. "If that's fine with you, Dad."

"Of course. I'm sure our guests would love a tour. Maybe you can show them something fun to do while you're roaming around." Henry accepted.

"Okay guys, looks like a tour is in session! Follow me!" She exclaimed cheerfully to Reika and Eight, who both followed her quietly. They walked down a dirt path, admiring the grassy landscape and wooden houses they passed by.

"It looks so different from Myopsida…" Eight commented.

"Yeah, like I said, my village is a pretty small place compared to a town like that." The girl said.

"So, I don't think you've told us your name yet." Reika pointed out.

"Oh right! Silly me. My name is Cleo Boldt, Miss Cuttlefish." The Inkling, who they now knew was named Cleo, said in a formal manner. Reika couldn't tell whether the fact everyone calling her "Miss Cuttlefish" felt great or felt undeserving. Deep down inside, she felt like everyone being so formal around her like this wasn't fair to them, considering the fact she hasn't been feeling like the "legendary hero" they seemed to portray her as.

"Look, I don't mean to be rude or anything, but the formalities aren't necessary. Just call me 'Three' or 'Reika', whichever you prefer." She explained. Cleo seemed confused at first, probably wondering why such an amazing hero like the Cuttlefish standing before her would tell her to stop being formal.

"Okie dokie, if that's what you want, Miss- I mean, Three." Cleo said.

"We need supplies, right?" Eight chimed in, after being silent for so long. Reika just replied with a tired "yeah".

"Oh, there's a shop over here! Quick, follow me!" Cleo said, grabbing Eight's hand and running over to the direction of the store. Eight's eyes widened the instant she felt a strong tug, and nearly tripped over her own legs trying to catch up with the peppy Inkling girl. Reika sighed, just shaking her head while smiling. On one turn of her head, she suddenly noticed a lot of the villagers around her stopped what they were doing, some whispering to one another while others just stared at her in awe, some pointing at the Inkhander on her back.

"_They must be talking about me. I guess Cleo really wasn't kidding when she said her village looked up to the Cuttlefish."_ Reika thought. She then ran off in the direction where Cleo dragged Eight, all the while everyone watched in amazement at the sight of a hero-to-be in their home.

* * *

**Elsewhere****…**

The rotten wooden doors were splintered into hundreds of shards upon the impact of Callie's weapon. Her weapon was special, a club-like weapon known as a Roller. Originally conceived and crafted by old Cuttlefish family blacksmiths, the Roller was a large club weapon with a long cylinder as it's head. The cylinder would be covered in ink from the user, being able to be thrown forward if the weapon was flicked or slashed in mid air. The cylinder also had the ability to fold out, allowing the user to roll across the battlefield and crush anyone in their path, all the while leaving a thick trail of ink. It was Callie's favorite weapon, besides a broadsword that she occasionally used in place of the Roller.

Callie kicked away the remaining pieces of the door before stepping into the room, Marie following close behind. They were currently scouting out a ruined fort, last used during the Great Octavian Wars. The fort obviously hadn't been inhabited by anyone since. Evidence of its abandonment was clear all over the building. Moss and vines grew all around the walls, which were littered with cracks. Crumbled piles of rock and stone were gathered all around the ground, with broken pillars here or there. The metal rings that would have once carried torches were now rusty and empty. There was no roof anymore, with a large hole replacing it. There was no evidence of anyone having been here recently...at least, until the two squids looked at the center of the room, where an altar remained. There, three dead Inklings lie, their bodies still preserved from the dark magic. Symbols and shapes surrounded the altar, with melted wax candles dotting the floor.

"Dear cod…" Marie muttered, as her eyes shifted to the naked dead. Callie just released a gasp, her face twisting into one of pure disgust. She could feel her lunch starting to come back up, and walked over toward a pile of rocks to throw up. Meanwhile, Marie walked over to the dead bodies, kneeling beside one. She could tell the one closest to her was a young girl, probably just having turned fourteen when she died. It was a sickening fate that saddened Marie, who could do nothing but observe.

"_I promise, you and your family will get a proper burial."_ Marie thought solemnly.

"So, this is...this is where they summoned Octavio?" Callie asked, wiping her mouth.

"Yeah, seems like it. Tracking Octavio's Castle shouldn't be too hard, but I can't believe we had to find a sacrificial altar of all the things to find first." Marie answered, standing up and dusting herself off.

"So, what now? How do we track him down?"

"Well, I can try to use magic to find traces of Octarian sorcery, and maybe we can use that to get a trail."

"There's no need, my friends. You already found us." A voice echoed around them. The duo looked around frantically, trying to find the source of the creepy sound.

"Up here, above you." They did as told, and the two looked up to see two Octarian warriors, both Octolings, standing at the edge of the large gaping hole in the roof. One Octoling had long magenta robes with decorative Octarian designs, and a small badge depicting a golden tentacle that clipped the robe together by his left shoulder. His clothing made it obvious he was a magic user. The other was more of a warrior, with two swords equipped on his body, one sheath on a belt that was strapped diagonally across his body, and one in a sheath lying horizontally on the back of a belt around his waist. He had a long ponytail, with a silver chestplate that only covered his chest and a tunic underneath. He also had a blue leather kilt, with pants underneath and armored boots.

"Where is your master? Tell us, now!" Marie demanded. Callie raised her Roller and got into a defensive position, not liking their current situation.

"That is not of your concern." Cobias answered coldly. He unsheathed both his single-edged swords, before leaping down to the ground to meet his opponents. Luda did the same, grinning viciously.

"You know, Cobias and I were just passing by, and it was getting mighty boring out here. I guess I should consider myself lucky to have detected some Inklings nearby." Luda explained.

"Prepare to pay with your blood, Inklings." Cobias said, getting into a stance.

"Gladly." Marie replied, and the four of them prepared to duel in the ruins.

"_Reika, wherever you are...I hope you're doing better than we are."_ Marie thought, and she quickly cast a spell at her adversaries, beginning the fight...

* * *

**So, what's the result of the battle? Come find out on the next chapter! But until then, I'll see you later. Be sure to leave a review or any thoughts you have, and have a nice day.**


	7. Chapter 7

**Armageddon of Uncertainty Part 1**

**Not much for me to say rn, other than hoping the wait wasn't too long! Then again, this chapter is pretty long, and I just wanted to make another long chapter for this specific section in the story. Anyways, enjoy!**

* * *

If there was one thing the Squid Sisters had noticed about their current Octarian adversaries, it was that the two were excellent at combat. Cobias spun around, his swords dancing across the air as they slashed away at Callie. Callie positioned her Roller in front of her, blocking the strikes. She could feel their impact against the Roller's cylinder barrel, the power of each strike rattling through her arms. Every one of Cobias' strikes were intense, yet swift and hard to keep track of. Callie spun around, using the momentum of her spin to swing the Roller at her foe. Cobias swiftly backflipped twice, landing in a kneeling position. He then charged, swords at the ready, but nearly got hit with a wave of ink created from a downward swing of Callie's weapon. Not too far away, Marie and Luda were tight in a fight with magic. Marie created a barrier out of random stones and broken bricks, all glued together with an ink adhesive. This barrier proved useful, blocking a powerful laser-like projectile that Luda materialized from his hands. Marie countered, launching the barrier forward with the movement of her arms towards the opposing Octarian. Suddenly, two small portals appeared on the ground, and out emerged two large tentacles. The tentacles batted away the large stone object with ease, with Marie watching it crumble to the ground.

"Ah, another magic user whose skill is worth admiring. How entertaining…" Luda commented as the two tentacles beside him sunk back into their portals. The portal appeared beside Marie, and she dove out of the way just in time, with a tentacle smashing down right where she once stood.

"Luda, enough chatter." Cobias commanded his comrade, as he thrusted forward with his blades. Callie smacked the Octarian aside, and watched as he rolled across the ground. Cobias simply stood up however, brushing himself off.

"These Inklings...they are quite troublesome."

"Hey Marie, you hear that? He thinks we're giving him trouble!" Callie said cheerfully. Marie didn't understand how her cousin could still have a chirpy attitude in a fight like this, especially when she felt they were currently losing.

"Callie, watch out!" Marie exclaimed. Callie tilted her head and gave her cousin a confused stare, until she remembered Cobias. Turning around, she could see the Octoling in mid-air, swords pointed downwards. Callie spun around to get away, and slammed her Roller onto the hard rocky ground. The explosion of ink knocked Cobias down, and he barely had time to use both his swords to block Callie's heavy weapon. As he crossed his blades for maximum effect, his feet began to slide back ever so slightly, with Callie pushing forward with every step. The weight of the Roller was like a large heavy club, and it was easily able to push around Cobias thin metal swords.

"Luda, I require assistance!"

"Oh, only if you ask kindly." Luda remarked.

"Just do as I ask!" Cobia shouted angrily, pushing harder. Luda shrugged, ordering a tentacle after Marie while he ordered another to attack Callie. The squid didn't notice it coming her way, and the appendage whipped her body with one strike. Callie flew across and landed against a wall, before falling onto the floor in a ragdoll-like fashion. A shallow crater of dents and cracks in the shape of a humanoid figure remained where she landed. Callie was now out cold, her Roller just laying several feet from her body.

"Callie!" Marie exclaimed, angrily casting several ink projectiles at Luda. Luda levitated stone slabs to use as walls, picking one up to block before dropping it for another with every projectile thrown at him.

"I'm afraid play time's over, Inkling scum." Luda said with his signature smirk, shooting both tentacles forward to grab Marie. Marie tried to concentrate on another spell, but all she could think about was Callie. Her cousin was in an exploitable state, and Cobias was slowly walking towards her unconscious body, swords in hand for the slaughter.

"Callie, wake u-" Maire couldn't finish her sentence, when one of her arms was wrapped tightly by a tentacle, while her leg was caught by the second. Held in place, Luda prepared a powerful strike, with ink coursing through his veins and energy flowing into his hands.

"Farewell, enemy. It was fun while it lasted." Luda mocked.

* * *

Meanwhile…

Reika walked on the edge of the dirt path, her hands stuffed in her red jacket. It was becoming night soon, with the sun setting in the distance. A beautiful sight in her eyes, the sky being a splash of colorful gradients of purple, pink and orange. Yet, her mind couldn't focus on this beautiful sight, not now, as she reminded herself. For as beautiful as the sunset was, it only marked another day closer to when Octavio said he would raze the land and begin his genocidal quest. And despite this, she was nowhere close to fighting Octavio, and not even anywhere near having the confidence to do so. The mere thought of facing the man terrified her. She remembered her earlier nightmare, waking up horrified. Luckily, Drew was there for her like he had always been.

"_I wonder what happened to him...I wonder what he thinks of all of this...of me…"_ Reika thought to herself, watching the sunset as she quietly walked the path.

"Hey, there you are!" A cheery voice exclaimed loudly in the distance. Reika spun around to see Cleo waving to her wildly, a large grin on her face. Eight was following close behind, a shy smile on hers.

"We were waiting for you at the shop, but you never came. Eight thought you got lost, but there's no way you could've gotten lost in a small village like this, heheh!" Cleo chirped.

"You're right. I just needed some time to myself I guess. So, what'd you buy?" Reika asked, hoping to derail the conversation as to make sure neither girl asked what she was currently thinking.

"Oh, we just bought some random things I thought you might need. See, got some materials to set up camp if we ever needed to rest, medical supplies, and things like that. Sorry if my village doesn't have enough stuff as a big town or anything." Cleo said.

"Oh, it's no problem, this should be enough for now."

"Great! Hey, want to come and see my house? I'm sure my siblings would love to meet you!" Cleo asked, grabbing Reika's hand and pulling her towards the direction of said building.

"Uh, are you su-"

"Of course I am! You too Eight!"

"O-okay." Eight mumbled in response, quietly following behind. They stopped in front of a medium sized cottage, made of light brownish-gray wood, with some more distinct darker colored beams separating sections in the walls. The roof was also wood, being the same exact color of the beams. A simple torch was lit at the front doorway, the orange-yellow flame swaying to one side from the breeze. Cleo opened the door, waving her hand in a motion of invitation, similar to that of a butler.

"Welcome to my home, Miss Cuttlef- I mean, Three." Cleo said, correcting herself once more.

"_Guess she's still getting used to that."_ Reika thought, walking in silently. The silence was broken almost immediately, as two small Inkling children came running to her, arms outstretched.

"Big sis!" They both yelled out, passing Reika and jumping in joy by Cleo's feet. Cleo laughed at their presence, picking her siblings up and giving them a hug. In response, they let out a fit of childish giggles.

"Hey you two, nice to see ya! You wanna say 'hi' to our guests?" Cleo asked. The two children greeted Reika and Eight, who both smiled and waved back.

"Where are they from? They look different." One of the siblings, a young boy, asked. He pointed to Eight and Reika, referring to their different clothing compared to their village clothes.

"Oh, well, they're heroes from Inkopolis! Pretty cool, huh?" Cleo answered.

"Woah really? Are they like the Cuttlefish from Dad's stories? You know, the one with the cool sword?" He asked, his eyes filled with wonder and curiosity. Reika felt uneasy at the mention of her family name, but did her best to not show it.

"Exactly! In fact…" Cleo said, winking at Reika. She could already tell what the shorter yellow Inkling was about to say, and motioned for her to stop, shaking her head "No" repeatedly. Much to her dismay, it appeared as if Cleo didn't even notice. "...One's standing right in front of you guys!" Cleo announced.

"Awesome!" Both children exclaimed. Eight laughed at their excitement, and even Reika couldn't help but smile at the sight.

* * *

It wasn't until later in the night that Cleo's siblings got to see the Inkhander up close. Reika agreed to show them the sword, which only mesmerized them even more. They were in awe at the sheer fact that they were in the presence of a Cuttlefish, and were looking at the sword up close and personally. While Cleo and her family ate supper, with Eight joining them, Reika headed out the back in the dark. She set the Inkhander aside on the grass, before unsheathing her short sword and holding it out in front of her. Quietly, she practiced her swings, similar to how she would have back when training as a soldier for the King. As she trained, she imagined targets, enemies to be more specific, and she imagined herself in battle with them, striking at them from all directions. She would carefully plan out her steps, trying to figure out what worked and what didn't. Reika hardly noticed Cleo open the door, walking outside with a full plate of food. The yellow Inkling watched as Reika swung her sword across the air, the slashes making soft noises. She sat down by the steps of the back doorway, watching intently as the Cuttlefish warrior trained. It was dark while Reika trained, but she hadn't noticed some dim light appear around her when Cleo came out, too focused on her task. It wasn't until she spun around from a swing that she found herself face to face with the yellow Inkling.

"Oh, I didn't notice you were there." Reika said.

"No no, you were doing good! Pretend I'm not here." Cleo said. Her eyes widened as she remembered something, and she grabbed the plate of food and presented it to her guest.

"Oh yeah, you kinda skipped supper and my parents both felt bad you didn't eat, so we saved you a plate." Cleo explained.

"Heh, thanks. I think I'll eat later though." Reika replied, turning around and continuing her training. However, it didn't take long for Cleo to say something.

"It's stressing you out, isn't it?" Cleo asked. Reika, confused what the Inkling meant, stopped all training at once and turned back to face her once more.

"Hm?"

"I saw you leave, and I asked Eight why you weren't going to eat. She told me some stuff, like how you aren't really sure about this whole 'hero' stuff, and Octavio."

"Oh...so you know then."

"Yeah...hey, if it helps, I think I'd be scared too, if I were in your shoes right now." Cleo said. Reika didn't say anything in response, so Cleo continued.

"Heh, thanks." Reika muttered. She could hear commotion in the house, and the two turned to look through one of the windows. Inside, they saw Eight playing with Cleo's brother and sister, chasing them while they ran from her and laughed. Cleo chuckled at the sight, and the sight of Cleo's siblings playing with Eight made Reika feel somewhat warm inside, although she didn't know why.

"Your family means a lot to you, doesn't it?" Reika asked.

"Yeah, they're everything to me. If they were ever in danger, I'd do anything in my power to save them. Even if it means I have to sacrifice something, I'd still come and help them."

"That's some dedication right there." Reika complimented, earning a small chuckle from the yellow Inkling.

"Yeah, but they really do mean that much to me. What about you? I'm sure the Cuttlefish family are pretty close-knit." Cleo asked. Immediately after asking, Cleo could see Reika face away, a forlorn expression appearing on her face. Cleo could see it, despite the other's efforts to hide her face among the night.

"I...I don't really know anymore."

"Is it about the whole exile thing that happened a while back? Dad told me about that in a story, but I just thought they were exiled, not killed."

"They aren't dead." Reika affirmed, before continuing. "It's just...I only just met them a few days ago."

"Wow, really? That's...okay, that makes no sense, how does that work?"

"It's a bit of a long story, but to summarize it all for you, the King kidnapped me as a child. I don't even remember anything before the King. He took care of me, kind of raised me like his own daughter in a way, although I was never supposed to live in the castle. Of course, I know some of my family now, but I don't even have that special connection they all would. Kind of feel lost." Reika explained.

"Ouch. So is that why you're having so much trouble seeing yourself as a hero?" Cleo asked, wanting to know more. This conversation with the Cuttlefish "hero" was interesting to her.

"Yeah, you could say that's part of it. I just wanted to be a soldier, or even a knight. I just wanted to be a regular ordinary person, and now suddenly I find out I'm supposed to be some hero that has to march over to some angry cephalopods's castle in order for everyone to be saved. It's just hard for me to wrap my head around all of this, yet I have the whole world's hopes weighing down on my shoulders."

"You have Eight though, don't you? I'm sure she's helping you along the way, judging by what I saw at that fight earlier today."

"Heh, you're right. Eight's been helping me. That, I'm thankful for. Feels good to know I don't have to do it all alone." Reika commented, looking up at the crescent moon above their heads. She smiled, thinking about how her new Octoling friend had stuck with her, even when the Cuttlefish had told her that she didn't have to follow. Yet, Eight remained firm on her stance, eager to follow Reika on her quest to defeat Octavio.

Suddenly, an idea popped into Cleo's head, and her eyes widened as if a lightbulb suddenly switched on in her brain. She stood up enthusiastically, before telling Reika what it was.

"Hey, I just had the best idea ever! How about I follow you two on your little quest? Okay, maybe 'little' is the wrong word, but you get the idea. What do you say?" Cleo asked. Reika seemed shocked at hearing this, and a wave of concern rushed to her mind.

"No no, you don't have to. When I said I had the whole world's hopes on my shoulders, I didn't necessarily me-"

"Aw come on, why are you refusing? Think about, it's one more person helping you! More the merrier, right?"

"You don't understand, fighting Octavio, it isn't that sim-" Reika was once again interrupted by Cleo, this time with the young Inkling piping down on her excitement.

"Hey, remember not long ago when I said I would do anything to save my family, even if it meant sacrifice? Well, they're in danger now, we all are. If you don't kill him, then they all die. I want to help you save everyone, even if it means I have to die doing it." Cleo then extended her arm out, waiting for a handshake. "So what do you say, do we have a deal? Also, I'm not taking 'no' for an answer, hope you know that." Cleo jokingly explained. Reika was conflicted. Nearly every part of Reika's mind was against the idea, hoping to maybe find a way to keep this young girl from leaving with her to a horrible death sentence. Yet, despite all those parts of her brain telling her to not accept, Reika couldn't seem to shake off the feeling that this was going to be beneficial in the long run. She saw the young girl's archery skills, how she managed to incapacitate that soldier from such a far distance. Combat skill like that could be valuable, especially for her quest. And so, albeit reluctantly, Reika reached out and shook Cleo's hand.

"Wow...if I were to shake your hand a few hours ago, I'd probably faint from a happiness overload." Cleo joked. The two burst out laughing, as Reika picked up her plate full of food and headed back inside, where they were greeted by an exhausted Eight and Cleo's two siblings.

* * *

**Elsewhere…**

When he first heard the task from his father himself, Drew couldn't believe what he heard. Reika, his lifelong childhood friend, was a Cuttlefish member? Not only that, but now she was an enemy to the kingdom? Something didn't feel right. He agreed with his father that making peace with the Octarians was a good idea. But that was before Octavio. That was before the demands, the attacks, the dead. And now, his father just seemed to be derailing further from what he should have been, getting closer and closer to the edge of insanity. It scared Drew, seeing his father like this. And it tore him even further that now, he was out hunting for Reika. He was out hunting for the girl, dead or alive, with one mission: find the girl, get the sword and return it to the King. For the first two days, his mission hadn't been on a good start. Reika seemed to have disappeared without a trace, and for all he could assume, she was already dead and the sword was simply lost somewhere in the forest. That was, until today, when he heard about the attack on Myopsida. Apparently, the trading town was attacked by none other than Octavio's monsters, which hadn't surprised him in the slightest. Octavio had been picking off small villages before then, mostly as "motivation" for the King to speed the search up. Had it not been for a specific detail on the attack, Drew likely would have ignored it. From what he could gather, a girl wielding the legendary Inkhander, as well as an Octoling sorcerer, was spotted at Myopsida and captured there. That was, until the attack happened, and the two aided the soldiers in fighting off the vile creatures. Following this new start, Drew eventually left Myopsida to find a bunch of dead soldiers along the road, in what appeared to be a short fight. There were traces of ink still remaining, although most of it had already evaporated.

It was now evening, with the black of the night cloaking his figure as he rode his seahorse down the dirt road.

"_Finally, a trail. There should be another town down the road, maybe they stopped there."_ Drew thought to himself, riding towards the right direction. As he continued, he lit a small lantern to carry with him, not wanting to be picked off by some of Octavio's monsters in the middle of the night. The thought of some ravaging beasts flying around at night looking for easy prey made the prince uneasy, but he pressed on. Suddenly, two figures emerged ahead the road. His seahorse came to a halt, right beside the two figures on the road. As he examined them at a closer range, he could see they were both female Inklings. One of them was wearing green clothing and had her arms over the other's shoulder, helping her walk. The other was more in a pink attire, dragging a heavy looking club around.

"Excuse me, are you two okay?" Drew asked. They seemed injured and lost, both things that weren't god signs, especially at night.

"We are alive...alive, and tired...that's all that matters." The green one said through deep, exhausted breaths. The other Inkling appeared injured, with some wounds covering her body that were revealed by the lamp's light.

"It's not safe to be out by yourselves at night, especially considering what's been happening the past few days. Here, allow me to escort you to the closest town, I'm heading there anyway." Drew offered, offering the green Inkling a hand. She gladly took it, carrying the other girl on top of the seahorse before getting on herself. The heavy club-like weapon surprisingly didn't make too much weight, but Drew knew it would definitely slow them down considering he had two other people on its back now. He didn't even understand how he was managing to pull off three people being on one seahorse, but at that point he didn't care.

"Alright, hang on. We should arrive shortly." Drew told them, getting a murmured response that he couldn't quite hear. As fast as he could get it to run, Drew dashed down the road towards the next town over.

Once they arrived, Drew had paid for an inn room so the two could rest. As they spoke, Drew was surprised to find that the two were in fact Callie and Marie, the popular singers that usually performed down at Inkopolis Square. He remembers occasionally walking through the area and listening to them sing, remembering thinking that they were possibly the most talented singers he had ever had the pleasure to listen to at Inkopolis. He handed the two of them some hot drinks, before sitting down on a nearby chair. Callie, who now had several bandages around her limbs and body, was resting on the bed while Marie sat at the edge of it.

"Thank you." Marie said, taking the drink from Drew's hand.

"No problem, you two look like you need rest." Drew said. "Hey, if you don't mind me asking, how did you two end up in that condition?"  
"How do you think? Octarians of course." Marie answered.

"Hmph, should've known. What were you two doing out in the middle of the night though? I'm sure you've heard of all the attacks on the villages, it's not safe to be out alone like that."

"We were just trying to help my sister find a place important to her. That's when we got attacked by some Octarians. They weren't monsters, they were Octolings." Marie explained.

"Are we being interrogated or something?" Callie asked, getting a small laugh from Drew as a result.

"Heheh, not quite, I was just curious, is all." Drew answered calmly. He didn't want to sound rude in front of the famous duo, but something about them felt suspiciously odd. Why were they carrying a strange looking weapon around with them? Were they expecting an attack, or was there more to the story that they hadn't told him about? Drew decided to poke a bit more, starting with the strange weapon in question.

"Hey, what's that thing you were carrying around? I mean, it looks a bit like a big club, but I've never seen it before." Drew asked, pointing to the strange cylindrical object.

"Oh, that's called a Roller. It's mine." Callie answered. "It's a heavy weapon, where that barrel pops out so you can roll over your enemies and crush them. You can also fling ink with it if you want." She explained.

"Cool. Where'd you get it? I've never seen a weaponsmith sell anything like it. I've seen weird looking weapons, but never that." Drew asked, hoping he wasn't making the two squids uncomfortable with his constant poking around.

"Oh well uh...I just got it as a gift. I don't really know where it's from." Callie answered. She smiled, but it was more closer to a nervous smile.

"_I wonder why they're worried about a weapon...well, I should probably just drop it altogether, it's not getting me anywhere."_ Drew thought to himself.

"Hey, sorry for all the questions, I'm just sort of a curious guy, you know?" Drew apologized, giving off a nervous laugh of his own.

"It's fine, your questions were somewhat expected. After all, the Roller does look weird compared to your average clubs and swords and whatnot." Marie said, taking another sip of her drink.

"Alright well, I should be heading out now, I've got some important stuff on my hands that I really need to be getting on to. Get some rest, and stay safe!" Drew said, wishing them good luck on whatever they were trying to do. The two girls did the same, and he left the room, closing the door behind him. Once he left, both Callie and Marie turned to look at one another.

"Thank cod he left. For a second there, I thought he would ask us further about our whereabouts." Marie said.

"Too much big words…" Callie mumbled quietly while she drank.

"Fine, I thought he was going to try to find out where exactly we were. You don't recognize him?" Marie explained, before asking Callie the question.

"Hm? Isn't he the prince or something?"

"Yeah, he's probably trying to search for Reika, which isn't good. We need to be more careful next time." Marie said.

"I'm glad he helped us though. Imagine if we were just stuck on the road, heheh…"

"You're right Callie, that was nice of him to help us." Marie agreed. "Now, as for those Octolings we encountered back at that abandoned fort, it's a good thing we made it out alive. If you hadn't chucked your Roller at the sorcerer, I think we would have been toast." Marie said, pondering on the thought of how differently that fight could have ended.

"Yay, Callie for the win! Better yet, we got our location!" Callie cheered.

"That's right. They're going to the Abyss, although why, I'm not sure." Marie said. She was now thinking about the Octarians, trying to figure out their next move. She tried thinking back a few hours, about when they were still fighting the two Octolings:

_As soon as Cobias approached, Callie's eyes shot open, and she swept her legs across his, tripping him. She then quickly sprung to action, sprinting to her Roller, before with all her might, she tossed the weapon at Luda. Luda was too busy taunting an incapacitated Marie to pay attention to a flying Roller, and it smashed right into him, sending him flying into a pile of rubble. Cobias got up and attempted to cut down the unarmed Callie, but Marie was faster, blasting him with a high-powered ink projectile. An annoyed Luda, who brushed himself off, created a portal above him. He motioned to Cobias, who was beginning to stand also._

"_Cobias, let's leave these pests, we have other more important business in the Abyss." Luda said to his comrade, before levitating into the portal and disappearing. Cobias did not hesitate to grab his swords and sheath them, before sprinting towards the portal and somersaulting right into it. Marie wanted to follow, but she decided to let them go after noticing Callie's damaged state. With the battle over and now with some hint of where to find them next, Marie grabbed Callie and her Roller before leaving the fort, which had once again become lonely and abandoned once more._

However, the more she thought about it, the more Marie couldn't figure anything out. She would need to have Reika find out herself.

"Callie, get some rest. I'm going to go to that side of the room and try to 'talk' to Reika, got it?" Marie said.

"Your 'head talking' thing again? Aw, I thought we agreed I could be in the next one!"

"Cal, I promise you can be on the one after this, this is important right now and you are in no condition to get out of bed. You need the rest." Marie said firmly, much to Callie's dismay.

"Fine...promise?" Callie begrudgingly obliged, but want confirmation on her cousin's word.

"I promise."

"Okay." Callie muttered, seemingly satisfied. Marie watched her turn around and close her eyes, before sitting down on the other side of the room and preparing the spell. She could already hear Callie snoring softly, an obvious indication that the squid in question was out cold by now. With silence filling the room and with no further distractions, Marie closed her own eyes and began to softly mutter to herself.

* * *

Reika couldn't understand why everything needed to be so conflicting. She was quite happy to hear that another person, namely Cleo, was happy to help her along her quest, but at the same time, she already had her doubts about letting the young girl follow her and Eight. When Cleo had made the announcement to her family, the news was sudden. It shocked the rest of her family members, although how they reacted depended on who it was. Cleo's siblings were more than ecstatic to hear that their older sister was going to embark on a journey with a Cuttlefish, not aware of the danger the journey was full of.

Her parents, on the other hand, were concerned. The announcement was so sudden that they didn't know what to think of it. Both parents were obviously aware of the stories of Octavio, his power and how many warriors have fallen to his army of monsters, so their concern was logical. However, Cleo had managed to convince them otherwise, which is how she was now in the front, leading the seahorse to the right path towards the next town. Reika remembered her parents waving to them when they were ready to depart, their faces displaying both happiness, but some hints of fear and worry. It was those small hints of emotions that was eating away at Reika, something that Eight was beginning to notice.

"Hey Three, are you okay?" Eight said, after a long period of silence. It was now in the middle of the night, and everywhere around them was pitch black. Their wagon easily stood out though, with two lanterns hanging off the side to light the way, and another beside Cleo so she could see.  
"Hm? Yeah, I'm fine, just tired." Reika lied.

"Okay. You should sleep."

"Heh, yeah, I probably should. Wake me up if something happens, okay?" Reika told Eight, who replied with a soft "okay" in response. Reika laid down on the wooden floor of the wagon, closing her eyes and hoping her body would just drift asleep. Finally, after what felt like a minute of listening to the floor rumble and the wheels running over rocks, the exhaustion finally overtook her and she fell fast asleep. It was warm, dark, and comforting. No dreams were on display, just a blank mind of nothing. That was, until she heard a voice.

"_Reika…"_ The voice, a familiar one, called out. Suddenly, Reika could see herself standing in the middle of a dark void, just her and the voice. A spotlight shone where she stood, making her stand out. From the shadows, another figure walked, with another spotlight soon following it.

"_Reika, we need to talk." _Marie said. She snapped her fingers, and two chairs magically appeared, one behind her, and one behind Reika.

"_Go on, sit."_ Marie commanded, and her sister did just that. Marie followed suit, pulling her bandana down below her chin. _"Hey kiddo, how've you been? I haven't spoken to you since you went off about saving a friend of yours. Glad to see you aren't dead from that whole fiasco."_ Marie said.

"_I've been doing fine, and my friend is alive, thank cod. Worse, I somehow managed to get another person caught up in my business."_ Reika answered, referring to Eight and Cleo. Marie thought for a moment, tapping her chin as she did so.

"_Hm, I wouldn't say that's worse. I mean, I assume they want to help you, right? Look, you should be grateful for that, especially with your case. If anything, you're going to need the most help you can get, speaking of which…"_ Marie said, changing position in her chair before continuing. _"Callie and I have been trying to track down Octavio's castle for you. We reached some sort of abandoned Octarian fort that was used in the Great Octavian War. It seems that's where his followers revived him, since we found a sacrificial altar, but it looks like someone wanted to clean up after themselves, because we found two Octoling warriors there."_ Marie said.

"_What happened?"  
"Well, Callie and I did our best, but we nearly got killed. They decided to retreat, but as they did I managed to get a small subtle hint about where they were heading."_ Marie explained further.

"_Where are they going?"_

_The Abyss, you know, that giant, deep ravine with the creepy shady looking towns and stuff. I don't know what or who they're after, but whatever it is, it must be important if they decided to do that over killing a pair of Inklings."_ Marie said. This news intrigued Reika, who started to question what the Octarians were up to now. She had heard of the Abyss, mainly from town chatter back at Inkopolis. From what she heard, the Abyss was a deep trench-like ravine, where a giant underground city system was located. Rumor had it that this city was a shady marketplace, where you could get the strangest of items, whether dangerous or obscure. Then there were the rumors about the monsters that lurked the Abyss. Was there something down there, something they needed? The first thing to come to mind was a weapon, maybe something like the Inkhander, but Reika assumed Marie or even their Gramps would have mentioned such a thing. However, something like this couldn't be ignored, and it was her best shot at getting closer to Octavio.

"_Okay, I'll go check it out. Did you find Octavio's castle though?"_ Reika asked. A forlorn Marie bowed her head, and Reika rightly assumed the castle was not found.

"_I'm sorry, we tried but Callie was too wounded to keep going. We got help from the Prince himself, but thankfully he didn't know what we were up to."_ Marie said. The mention of the Prince caught Reika's attention. Drew. So he was around, but what he was up to, she had no idea. Reika could only hope he wasn't out for her life like everyone else under the King's employ.

"_Something wrong?"_ Marie asked.

"_N-no, nothing at all. I'll go check out the Abyss, see what's over there."_ Reikasaid, not wanting to talk about Drew with Marie at the moment.

"_Understood. Callie and I will meet up with you once we recover. Good luck."_ Marie said.

"_Yeah, thanks."_ Reika simply replied, and like a dream about to end, Reika watched as both their figures disappeared in a slow puff of smoke, dissipating within the darkness.

She woke up to find Eight sleeping across from her, the Octoling cuddled into a small ball wrapped in her own cloak. Reika thought it was a bit cute, but didn't mention it aloud. Instead, she left her friend alone and crawled over to the front of the wagon, where Cleo was.

"Hey, you're awake!" Cleo exclaimed upon looking back and seeing the wide-awake Cuttlefish.

"Shh, keep it down! Eight's trying to sleep!" Reika chastised as loud as she could in a whispered tone, with Cleo replying with a nervous "oops".

"Hey Cleo, have you ever heard of the Abyss?"

"Hmm? Uh, a little bit, but it's all from merchants that occasionally visited my village who would tell stories of their travels. Why?" Cleo explained, before asking for clarification.

"Yeah, well I just got a tip off from a family member of mine that the Octarians are up to something, and whatever that is it's at the Abyss. If we can get there and find out what's going on, then we could possibly get closer to Octavio and take him down."

"Sounds like a good plan, Four'll make a quick detour right away!" Cleo said, pointing to herself with her thumb, a large grin on her face. Reika was a bit confused, especially at the Inkling's self-given nickname.

"Four?"

"Yeah, you said to call you Three, and she's Eight-" 'Four' said, pointing to the sleeping Octoling in the back. "-so I'll be Four! Someone's gotta keep this in numerical order!" Cleo joked.

"Heh, you're right, Four." Reika said. The new nickname for their new member seemed right, and it gave Reika a sense of comfort knowing there was a new person she could count on. "Alright, let's get this wagon over there pronto!" Cleo exclaimed, commanding the seahorse to turn around towards their new direction. As she did this, the two could hear deathly cries above, followed by the sound of flapping wings.

"Octarian monsters…" Reika muttered, before turning to Cleo and grabbing the reins.

"Four, I can steer us, you defend the wagon and shoot them down!" Reika ordered, switching spots with Cleo, who already had her bow and ink-tipped arrows out.

"Got it." Cleo replied, pulling out an arrow from her quiver and taking aim, firing into the night as they rode off, the sound of the beasts following close behind…

* * *

It was early at the crack of dawn when they arrived. By some unknown miracle, Eight remained fast asleep the whole chaotic ride there, and the seahorse, who Cleo dubbed "Stubborn Stan", hadn't given Reika any fusses during the rush. During their rush towards the Abyss, Reika was never able to see Cleo in action, but she could clearly hear the action as she focused on their path. The sound of Cleo pulling her drawstring back, before releasing an arrow. The silent whistle it made as the tip of the arrow began to "melt", giving off a small drip-like effect that usually left a thin trail when fired. She could hear the beasts give out cries of pain, before hearing bodies fall like heavy sacks of potatoes. Every shot fired was just another monster dead, and Reika could tell Cleo wasn't missing any of them. By the time they arrived at their destination, there were no more Octarians left on their trial.

A groggy Eight rose from her side of the wagon, rubbing her barely-open eyes before yawning. That's when she noticed that the rumble of the floor was gone, with the sudden bumps gone as well. Eight turned to look at the front where Cleo was sitting last she checked, but the girl was missing. Reika was also missing, no longer sleeping on the other side of the wagon. Eight assumed they stopped wherever they needed to go, a town or maybe even a city, and jumped out the back to find both of her companions chatting with one another. Cleo was holding her quiver, carefully counting her arrows while Reika was speaking to her about something.

"You have amazing accuracy! Where'd you learn to shoot like that?" Reika asked.

"Aw, thanks! My grandpa was an amazing archer, always going to competitions and stuff. I just sort of learned from him."

"Oh, that's cool. He definitely taught you well, from what I heard."

"Heard?"

"I was focusing on making sure the seahorse didn't try to kill us on the way here." Reika explained, before she noticed Eight walking over to them. "Oh hey Eight, you up?"

Eight simply nodded softly, yawning again.

"Where are we? Are we at a town yet?" Eight asked. Reika was confused, at least until she remembered Eight had been asleep the whole time.

"Oh, about that...we kind of made a big detour to the Abyss, apparently the Octavio is trying to obtain something from there, so hopefully by finding him or finding what that object is, we could find Octavio and take him down."

"Who told you that?" Eight asked, confused. There wasn't anyone else with them, and there was no way Cleo would have any information about the Octarian's next move, not unless she were psychic. Before Three could speak, Cleo stepped in front of her and barged in.

"Heh, Three over here uses a bunch of weird head magic!"

"Shut up, that's not what it's called." Reika retalitated.

"You said it was from a family member right? Oh wait, I think I know this! You know, how rumor says twins can sort of feel the same exact thing and crazy stuff like tha-" Cleo explained, before being cut off.

"That's not it...I'm not even sure we're twins…"

"Actually, let's just call it head magic, it sounds better than twin speaking." Cleo said, pointing to her forehead with one hand while poking Reika's forehead with the other.

"What kind of name is 'twin speaking'?" Reika asked.

"Just a random name, except head magic is better!"

"Why are we talking about this…" Eight questioned aloud, her head spinning with random details about the strange conversation.

"Okay, she's right this conversation is stupid. Here, is everyone ready to go? Cleo, how many arrows do you have?" Reika agreed, before asking her questions.

"Man, you sure do ask a lot of questions, heheh. But yeah, I should have plenty of arrows if we ever run into any trouble, but I'll probably have to get more after this."

"That's fine. Look, if there's nothing else we need, then let's go. We don't have much time to waste." Reika said. The wagon was right beside where the dirt path turned into one of rough, natural stone. The path cascaded downwards along the walls of a spectacular ravine, only known to many as the "Abyss". The Abyss was a gigantic and long ravine, winding down the landscape. If anything, by the group's point of view the ravine was so long it shot through the horizon, past the sky where the sun would rise and where the sun would eventually set. To match its length, the width was no joking matter either, spanning a few miles wide. All they could see was the tall walls of rock, grass and dirt hanging and rolled over the edges on the crust. Small caves dotted the walls, some entrances larger than others, but no matter how hard one could squint, they could see no light. No light, no illumination. Just a long hole filled with the black. To Reika, this sounded like the perfect spot for the Octarians, somewhere a man such as Octavio would enjoy thriving in.

"Woah...it looks...it looks way more terrifying in person." Cleo muttered.

"Agreed. Come on, let's just hurry up and get this over with, I don't want to stay here any longer than I need, there's no telling what could be down there." Reika ordered. Wasting no time, she rushed everyone back into the wagon, where they slowly began their descent into the ravine. As they traveled, the group started to have small chatter amongst themselves again.

"So...what is this place?" Eight asks, having never heard of the Abyss.

"You don't know?" Cleo asked, with the Octoling's response as a silent shake of her head. Cleo then began to make a short explanation for the girl.

"Well you see, this place is known as 'the Abyss'. It's a giant ravine, as you probably saw. There's lots of stories about this place, mostly scary ones, like how there's a whole city down here where they sell weird stuff, and I mean WEIRD stuff. Stuff you've never laid your eyes on, materials you wouldn't even see anywhere but here."

"But...what about the scary stories?"

"Oh, well there's tons of those...I heard that some unfortunate people sometimes fall from those bridges up there-" Cleo pointed above towards the wagon's roof, as they were already well into the Abyss, "-and people down there will find these bodies, or whatever's left of it, and harvest things like the organs and stuff." Cleo explained, gaining a disgusted and slightly-horrified look from Eight, who brought her knees to her chest and hugged them for protection.

"Back when I was training as a soldier, I heard stories of monsters that live here, many horror stories of those who were unfortunate enough to see them. I'm not even entirely sure if any of it is true, but it sure does send a chill through my body." Reika added, trying to sound as brave and stoic as she could. Despite this, what she said was true: the stories she's heard back at the barracks scared her. She could remember telling herself that there was no need to worry, as she had no reason to come down here. After all, the King and his supporters had no jurisdiction here and thus there was no real reason for any soldier to venture into the Abyss, unless they had a death wish. Or, in Reika's case, it was necessary for the survival of all Inkling kind.

It didn't take long for the darkness to envelop them, as they have traveled deep into the Abyss now. Here, sunlight barely reached the area, but it was hardly enough for any visibility of surroundings. All three of the girl's tentacles had a faint, soft purple glow to them thanks to their slight bioluminescence. The sounds of the ravine were quiet, with a touch of eerie whispers of noise floating through the air. The atmosphere was thick with fear and isolation, and it felt as though Reika was suffocating in it. She blindly patted around to her side for a lantern, before lighting it and hanging it on the side of the wagon. Stubborn Stan gave off a short neigh, stopping in his tracks and trying to protest from going further. However, Reika had no time to waste, and so she gave Stan's behind a small kick to encourage him. He seemed to agree to move, although not without small subtle hints of protest. Finally, after what felt like an ominous eternity, the group could see light. However, it wasn't sunlight, as absolutely no sunlight was able to reach down in the depths where they stood. Instead, the lights were of a large underground town. Despite this, light was a minority, with only a few dots of color scattered among the shacks, huts and small buildings that made up the town. They continued on, up until they had reached the entrance.

"Alright, we're here, I think." Reika said, with a hint of uncertainty. Cleo and Eight both hopped out the back, with Cleo giving a big stretch afterwards.

"Finally! Man, I've only been with you for a few hours and I'm already at a new place! Wow, feels kinda weird being outside the village for this long." Cleo said aloud, stretching her limbs some more.

"So...what now?" Eight asked as the trio walked into the town. The town was bustling with a diverse range of strange, freaky creatures. Strange looking fish or other creatures that the others could not identify walked the street or were vendors in the multitudes of shacks. But out of all of them, not a single one was an Inkling, or even an Octarian. Strangely-shaped lamps of all different kinds of bright colors would decorate the shacks, as would a strange assortment of goods and items. Weird ingredients inside jars, deadly weapons of all kinds, strange and alien-like food, potions and elixirs of all kinds of colors with strange bottles, and old, ancient-looking artifacts were just a handful of items being offered for sale. It felt like a whole entirely different world to the trio as they observed and watched in awe. Included with the strange materials up for sale by the freakish vendors, there was also a heavily shady atmosphere. In between shops and in the alleys, shady and suspicious creatures hung out in their own small groups and friends. As they walked through the streets, both shoppers and vendors alike stared the trio down, watching them, their eyes following every move with focused precision. It was like they were the aliens in this place, and everything else was normal.

"Well, I don't entirely know. My only tip off was that the Octarians were supposed to be here, somewhere in the Abyss. Where that somewhere is, I have no idea."

"How do we know they're nearby this town? This whole underground area is a giant cave system!" Cleo exclaimed, and she was right. Reika glanced above her to the cave's ceiling, which was raised high above her head, extremely far beyond her reach. Small chains hung from the rocks and stalactites, with large lamps that emitted an orange-ish yellow light, yet it didn't prevent the whole cave system from being the caliginous habitat it was now.

"Look, maybe we can ask around. There's got to be some sort of secret location or temple, or shrine, or whatever comes to mind. Think about it, if someone were to hide something down here, where would they hide it?" Reika explained, giving the two of her companions ideas on what they should ask for.

"Alright, sounds good. You sure we should split up or-"

"Actually, let's not. We've only been here for a few minutes and I'm already creeped out. I don't trust how shady this whole place feels, so let's just stick together for now." Reika said. She then turned to find Eight wandering off towards a shack, not having spoken a word. Reika followed her friend to keep a watchful eye on her, with Cleo following close behind. They walked right into what appeared to be some sort of shop that sold potions and elixirs. The shop had a strange smell to it, a mix of pleasant aromas and strange, unknown scents mixed into the air. Cauldrons of various liquids were along the walls, a few of them boiling while others sat around. Wooden signs had hand-written labels, detailing what each cauldron contained. A shelves of empty glass bottles were beside them, as well as more shelves and display cases of pre-bottled potions and liquids. Reika finally caught Eight staring at a shelf of full bottles, mesmerized by the strange colors of each one.

"Eight, could you please not wander off?" Reika asked. Eight had picked up a bottle carefully examined the bottle and the colorful pink liquid, turning the small bottle and watching a big bubble flow from one side to the other.

"S-sorry...I just wanted to look." Eight muttered.

"It's fine. Here," Reika said, before stuffing her hand into her jacket pocket and pulled out some Cash, before handing it to Eight, "Go buy something if you want. If there's anything you think you could use that could be helpful, go ahead." Reika said, earning a smile from the Octoling as she gladly took the money and ran off to the cauldrons.

"_Alright, time to ask around...I hope this doesn't take long."_ Reika thought to herself. They visited several shops, buying a small amount of items from a few of them. Eight bought some potions meant to heal wounds and ones that restored ink used during the casting of spells and magic, while in another shop, Cleo bought several interesting looking arrows, as well as a small single-handed crossbow that used small bolts, as well as a medium-sized single-sided dagger. Reika found herself buying a few items as well, such as small throwing knives and a small metal boomerang. She fitted them onto her belt, the knives fitting nicely in small leather sleeves she bought. As they moved from shop to shop, they gained small pieces of information from several of the vendors who spoke Inkling, much to Reika's surprise.

"A place to keep something hidden away? I'm not sure of any specific spots, this cave system is huge and a spot like that could be anywhere."

"Octarians? If they were here, I never saw them. Such a shock to see people like you here."

"I didn't see anyone like that, but I definitely like looking at you, cutie."

"There's many ancient ruins here in the Abyss. After all, this is only just a town."

"Should go check some ruins, that'll be my guess on where to look."

"_Okay, so according to everyone I've heard from, nobody's seen any Octarians down here, and there's ancient ruins we could go check out. That's still vague, but it's the best we've got."_ Reika thought to herself, walking out of a shop where the shopkeeper had been admiring her tentacles for far too long for her comfort. They walked into a small building that contained yet another shop. This shop was unique however, as it had many strange items on its shelves and display cases. Reika walked along a long open display full of items, running her finger along the edge of the wood that lined the display's exterior. She turned to see what Cleo and Eight were doing, and saw the two inspecting the strange trinkets as well. There were shelves full of random items, as well as junk bins that happened to have even more randomized materials stuffed into them. Cleo picked up a long metal object that neither of them had ever laid eyes upon. Beside it was a small box that had a slight slant on one end. The metal object was slender in shape but had a decent amount of weight. On one end, it had a strangely shaped triangular box, while the other end had a very skinny cylinder. A handle on the object had a ring located beside it, with a small metal piece in the center.

"I wonder what this thing is…" Cleo pondered aloud.

"Is it heavy?" Eight asked, poking it with her finger.

"A little bit, yeah. There was this weird box that was displayed near it, but it's empty. Kinda looks like a weapon. That or a weirdly shaped, heavy stick thing." Cleo said, holding up the skinny metal box. She then found a rectangular gap on the object, about the same size as the box. Putting two and two together, she tried to insert the box into the object and hoping it would do something, at least until a jellyfish jumped out of nowhere.

"Hey, put that down young lass!" The jellyfish exclaimed. The jellyfish had appeared from seemingly thin air, making Cleo jump back in surprise and drop the object.

"Dear cod! Watch it, do you not have manners for my possessions!?"

"S-sorry, I'll pic-" Cleo was interrupted by the jellyfish, who put a tentacle up and shushed her.

"No no no, you stand back!" The jellyfish angrily scolded, muttering something under his breath as he gathered the object and laid it back neatly on the display. Reika, who had been inspecting a small yellow box with a faded drawing on one side, had noticed the jellyfish and assumed he was the shopkeeper. This jellyfish, while looking similar to the many jellyfish she had seen in Inkopolis, was different. He had small dots on his head that came together to create a formation of skinny lines, with a colorful rainbow passing through them continuously He had tan clothing, and was more of a blue-ish gray than the more blue relatives up on the surface.

"Excuse me, I wa-"

"Yes, what do you want?"

"Uh yes, I was wondering if I could ask you some questions." Reika said.

"If you're with Miss Butterfingers over here, then you better scram before I throw you out of the Abyss itself!"

"Sir, this is really important." Reika said, trying to emphasize the fact she mentioned the subject being "important". The jellyfish stopped his grumpy rambling, studying the group in his shop carefully. Finally, he came to a conclusion.  
"Very well, you seem like interesting customers that could be good for business. So ask away." The jellyfish said, appearing to have a much more clamer demeanor now than before.

"Have you seen any Octarians around? Or if you haven't, do you know of any place where someone would try to hide something? Down here, I mean."

"I know what you mean lass." The jellyfish said, before continuing. "And no, I myself have not seen any Octarians, not since forever. Actually, I'm quite shocked to see two Inklings and an Octoling here in the Abyss, it's not much of a common sighting down here. You must have gotten quite the looks and stares, I imagine."

"Yeah, we got plenty of those…" Reika answered.

"Wait, what do you mean 'two Inklings and one Octoling'? We're all Inklings!" Cleo butted in. Reika was confused for a moment and blankly stared at the girl before she remembered that she had lied to Cleo about Eight. As far as little Four knew, Eight was just an Inkling with a weird tentacle style.

"Yeah, sorry Four...Eight's an Octoling."

"Wh-what?" Cleo just stood there, confused. She then grabbed Eight's arm and pulled the girl close, carefully examining the sorceress from head to toe. Suddenly, she began to notice differences, such as a different mask around the eyes, as well as her aforementioned tentacles.

"Oh my god...why, no, how have I not noticed this before? Man, I'm stupid!" Cleo exclaimed aloud.

"P-please...don't hurt me…" Eight muttered, fearful of what Cleo would do with this new knowledge, remembering her previous encounters with Inklings before. Surprisingly, Cleo released her grip and gave Eight a small pat on the head.

"Hm? I wouldn't hurt you, we're friends, aren't we?" Cleo said, giving a small grin to which Eight relaxed at the news.

"Are all Inklings this airheaded?" The jellyfish asked to nobody in particular.

"Hey, quiet you!" Cleo shouted back, gaining a small giggle from Eight.

"Okay, back on track, do you know of any specific places besides ancient ruins where someone would hide something?" Reika asked the jellyfish shopkeeper, attempting to fish out decent answers from him.

"Hmm...you know, now that you've got me thinking about Inklings...your question reminds me of something in the past."

"What? Is it a location? Did you see anything?"

"Yes, in fact, I saw a whole group of Inklings marching their way down into these deep depths I call home. It was many years ago, I was busy scavenging the remains of the ruins for interesting treasures and objects that you see around my shop. In fact, when I found that object Miss Butterfingers was playing with over there," The jellyfish said, pointing at the skinny metal item on display, "I watched as a whole group of them were marching down a path. A few of them were carrying a large stone container of some kind. I believe they had a prisoner as well, since I saw some armed men holding someone down. I could see the person's eyes, those my friend, are the eyes of defeat and surrender." The jellyfish explained.

"Where were they going?" Reika asked. This had to be it, whatever those Inklings had, it must be something Octavio wants.

"Well they were heading for an ancient labyrinth when I watched them. It's surrounded by old ruins of civilizations long ago. Anyways, I was intrigued with what they were up to, and so I quietly followed them, even mapped my way through the ruins as to not get lost. I watched as they encased someone into a stone chamber, that object that they carried with them. I watched them do all sorts of things, possibly magic related, and listened to the soft hum of their speech. However, that's the last I saw of an Inkling, until now."

"Sir, do you have a map of the labyrinth with you?" Reika asked, asking with confidence. She was confident that this was what she was looking for. Perhaps it was something the King, or even old Grandpa Cuttlefish himself was trying to seal away and to store away from Octavio.

"In fact, I do. Here, let me check…" The jellyfish ducked down beneath his desk and started to rummage through a bin full of old books and papers. Finally, he popped back up, holding an old, worn out map of the labyrinth. The whole map was littered in creases, with the edges becoming soft and ripped. A small corner of it was missing, and the color seemed faded but the map still appeared to be readable.

"Wow, this is...this is fantastic! Carp, I can't believe I've got it! Thank you so much!" Reika said, shaking the jellyfish's tentacle eagerly. Her grip was strong and he tugged several times before he forced his tentacle out of her hands.

"No problem lass. Go ahead, keep the map, it appears you have more use for it anyway."

"Thanks!" Reika said, waving to the shopkeeper. She walked over to Cleo and Eight, who were rummaging through a junk bin. When she arrived, the two stood up, looking at the map in her hands.

"Alright, looks like we found a place we could check out. Let's go, we've found what we needed." Reika said.

"Okay, next time, ask your head magic person to tell you more stuff, that way we have more details than detours." Cleo said.

"Alright alright, let's just leave, we got what we wanted. You coming Eight?" Reika asked the Octoling, who had gotten distracted once more by a small metal part. Eight dropped the item in her hand and joined the two as they followed the map towards the labyrinth…

* * *

**Meanwhile…**

Drew had never been one to snoop around other people's business, and normally liked to keep to himself. However, desperate times called for change, and now the crown prince had found himself following the famous Inkopolis singers. Although he constantly tried to ignore it, something about them bothered him. For example, why were they out and about in the middle of nowhere, away from any large town or city where he assumed they would sing and work? The duo had gotten quite the amount of Cash from their singing alone, as he had seen in his times of strolling Inkopolis. He found it strange for them to be out and about, away from the busy crowds of the more populated areas. Not to mention the strange cylindrical object that they seemed to be dragging around for no reason. The object looked like a unique weapon, similar in design to that of a large club. If it were a weapon, then why had the two been carrying one, and one that was so heavy? Had they wanted to defend themselves, Drew thought, some simple, lightweight blades would be enough. In the end, it all bothered Drew and didn't add up.  
_"I know I should be trying to track down Orange, but this...this feels too odd to ignore."_ Drew thought to himself as he followed them on seahorseback. The other two were on seahorses as well, probably having rented some at a stable in the town they had stayed in. Finally, after about an hour of careful pursuit, the two stopped in front of the Abyss. Drew stopped nearby, not wanting to be caught. He watched from a distance as they lit small handheld lanterns before riding down the ravine's path.

"_Alright...now something's definitely off. Why the Abyss? What's down here that they need? So many questions, but I've got to keep moving if I don't want to lose them."_ Drew told himself. He gave a moment to pause, before he simply just sighed.

"It's so boring, just talking to myself all the time…" He muttered aloud, his shoulders sinking as he released another soft sigh. His whole "adventure" had been quite uneventful and boring. He would travel to some town, gather information that was too vague or hardly understandable, and then rinse and repeat. Even following the Squid Sisters was more an assumption of his gut rather than full fact. The trail from Myopsida had grown somewhat cold, and the whole monotonous cycle of the search was starting to eat away at Drew's usual enthusiasm. He remembered how he listened to stories with Reika, stories of brave souls going on exciting adventures, facing challenges head-on and with no hesitation. Drew could remember asking Reika to come with him on an adventure once they got older, all back when they were young kids. And now, he was on an adventure, although everything about it was the complete opposite of how he would have imagined it to be.

"Reika...the sooner I find you...the sooner this can all be over…" Drew muttered again, before hopping back on his seahorse and following the path the Squid Sisters took. As he descended into the unknown, all he could see were the dim, illuminated circles that represented the Squid Sisters. The ravine walls looked as though they were fading out of existence. He could barely make out small entrances of caves that happened to be on the sides of the rock. The whole phenomena felt strangely terrifying to him, and the Abyss's cold, merciless blanket of black was wrapped all around him, suffocating the boy. His only saving grace was his small lantern, but the light that was emitted out its glass walls hardly felt bright at all. The fact that he was now a dim yellow light among the dark setting made Drew feel somewhat vulnerable to whatever terrors he was told lurked here. Soon, his fears would subside temporarily, as he reached what seemed to be the bottom of the ravine. There, large domes of compressed rock made up the large cave ceilings that were within the bottom. In the distance, he could see a town of sorts, and watched as the Squid Sisters traveled further in.

"I hate this place...so much…" Drew mumbled and he reluctantly followed, praying to the Great Zapfish that most of the stories and rumors he heard were myths…

* * *

"Alright guys, looks like we made it…" Reika said, holding a lantern in front of herself. There, the light revealed a stony gate. The gate looked ancient, as the designs of the border was littered with cracks and broken pieces. Despite the fact they were deep underground, the group could feel something chilly brush past them. Reika couldn't tell if this came from within the labyrinth, or it was just her own bottled up fear.

"A-Alright, let's go, we don't have much time to lose." Reika told everyone, and they followed close behind. As they walked, Reika held the lantern close to the map given to her by the jellyfish, directing her group on which path to take.

"Hey, what do you think this was here for?" Cleo asked aloud.

"No idea. What do YOU think this was here for?" Reika asked.

"I don't know. Maybe someone built it to keep everyone from finding something. I mean, that jellyfish guy mentioned some Inklings putting something here, he never said they were the ones that built the place." Cleo answered. She traced her fingers along the stone wall as she walked. Eight hadn't said a word, simply just staring at the opposite wall of Cleo.

"Something about this place gives me the creeps. Every corner we turn, I feel like a monster is going to be ri-" Just as Reika was about to finish her sentence, the group turned left around another corner. There, on the other side, they were met with strange creatures. The creatures were round, similar to the head of a jellyfish. The only difference was they had no face, and the creature looked more jelly-like, with small bubbles being seen inside them. Reika nearly dropped the map and lantern, as she just stood there, mouth agape. "-ght..around...the corner…"

"What the shell are those things!?" Cleo exclaimed, drawing her bow.

"Slimes...I heard of these things. Just cut them down, and move forward." Reika commanded, drawing her short sword. Without a warning, one of the slimes jumped out at her. Reika bisected the creature in mid-air, watching as its pieces fell to the ground before popping into small jelly-like puddles and evaporating. Two more lunged for the group, with Reika cutting down another and Cleo shooting the second. Eight launched an ink projectile, blowing up a cluster of three.

"Phew, not so difficult, eh?" Cleo said, although she had a slight hint of nervousness in her voice.

"Don't get cocky, I'm sure there's more stuff...more dangerous stuff too…" Reika scolded. She sheathed her sword and the group continued to walk. They continued to encounter a few more slimes, but dealt with each group with ease. The monsters were hardly a threat, and served more as an annoyance rather than an actual danger. Soon enough, they entered the end of the map, which turned out to be a large room. The room was quite big compared to the claustrophobia-inducing tunnels of the labyrinth outside, with large statues of warriors holding swords on each side of the room. Large lanterns lit the room with bright, sky-blue light. In the back of the room was a chamber of certain design. A long carpet starting from the entrance was spread all the way to the back of the room. There, at the end a large fountain sat above a short set of stairs, and it immediately caught the group's eyes. The large fountain was beautiful, with the pool of ink glistening in the room's light. A large serpentine gargoyle was coiled all around the fountain's exterior, with the head in the back, ink flowing gently out of its mouth. Above the fountain was a red banner, with a black octopus design on it.

"Woah...check this place out…" Cleo mumbled aloud, astonished at the sight of the room compared to the dark maze outside. Reika wasn't listening though, as she was too focused on the fountain on the other side of the room. She noticed that on both sides of the gargoyle, there were two large stone tablets with words inscribed on them. A thin sheet of ink flowed over them like a cover, draining down on small gutters at the bottom. The carved dents of the words on the tablets appeared darker in the ink than the rest of the uncarved rock, making it remain easy to read.

"_Punished, are you, for all your sins._

_Locked away, in the Abyss within._

_If ever trespassers, come to help,_

_May they all cry in anguish and melt." _ Reika read aloud. She could already feel a cold chill of fear coursing through her veins, a feeling she was not too fond of.

"What's wrong?" Eight asked, seemingly concerned.

"These tablets...I have no idea what they're saying, but it sounds so foreboding and creepy." Reika explained. Eight took a moment to read the tablet, before stepping away. Her face switched from intrigued to somewhat fearful.

"I think...I think something is in the fountain…"

"You do?" Reika asked, with Eight responding in a confident nod. "Are you able to get it out?"

"I'm not sure...I don't know if it's sealed, or what it was sealed with. I can try to figure it out, but it could some time."

"Ugh, that's the one thing we don't have…" Reika whispered in frustration. "Look Eight, can you at least try to get it out with some magic? We can't tell if we don't try."

"Alright...but stand back, I don't want you to get hurt like you always do." Eight told her friend, who obediently took several steps away from the fountain. Eight exhaled softly, closing her eyes and focusing on the fountain. Eight began to chant, with the whole chant starting in her usual soft, quiet tone, but gradually began to grow louder and louder. It caught the attention of Cleo, who had been admiring the statues before and looked over to see Eight using magic on the fountain. Eight's fingers curled, and intense energy began to pierce out from her palms as she attempted to pull whatever was concealed within the fountain. As she did so, the Octoling could feel something resisting. It was some other form of magic, some other spell that must have been cursed on the ink. Eight began to chant any counterspells she could remember, and slowly, an object was appearing on the surface. It was barely breaking the edge of the surface, and Eight was pulling with all her might. But no matter how hard she pulled, the object continued to resist as the cursed ink pulled it back into the fountain's depths. Eight was not about to give up, and decided to release more energy. Reika, now joined by Cleo, watched as Eight struggled to pull the object out. The two Inklings were starting to grow concerned, but they couldn't do anything to help.

Finally, with one last pull, Eight forcibly pulled the object from its watery prison. A large explosive splash rocketed into the air as a loud audible sonic-boom thundered across the room. Eight quickly shielded herself and her friends from the oncoming wave of ink, covering them with a magical barrier. The explosion hardly lasted long, with ink sliding down the barrier's walls. Eight was exhausted, her arms weary and tired. The barriers disappeared into thin air, and Eight fell backwards down the steps. Luckily, Reika caught the drained Octoling in her arms, preventing any serious injury.

"You alright?" Reika whispered. Eight nodded, and Reika gently laid her friend down on the ground before she approached the object Eight had pulled from the fountain. It looked to be some sort of rectangular stone object. A small emblem was carved into the face.

"What is that? Kinda looks like a coffin to me."

"Not sure, but I feel like something's inside. Alright Eight, you had your fun, now it's my turn." Reika said confidently, and she pulled out the Inkhander, feeling the tentacle wrap quickly around her arm. She stared at the stone object carefully, observing the emblem on its face. Then, without a further word, Reika slashed across the face once. The blade left a deep gash, and light was pouring out, blinding the Inkling. Slowly, small cracks began to form on the stone object, flooding the whole face of it. Small crumbs and pebbles began to drop off, sinking into the ink below like raindrops on puddles. As more cracks and small holes formed, more light began to seep through, with lines of bright, white light shining in all directions. Reika could hear a quiet crackling noise, and began to step away from the stone object.

"How much ya wanna bet it's going to blow up?" Cleo asked Eight, grabbing the Octoling's hand and stepping further away from the rock. Reika now broke into a full run, leaping into the air as the stone prison exploded behind her, rocks and lightning flying everywhere. The rocks slammed into several nearby pillars within the room, with the lightning zapping everything, from the walls to the pillars and carpet. It singed the stone and the fabric of the extravagant carpet. Reika got up and dusted herself off, thankful she hadn't been fried by a bolt of lightning. Cleo and Eight emerged from behind a pillar, with the former staring in disbelief at the damage done to the front of it.

"Guys, look!" Eight exclaimed, pointing at the fountain. There, the stone object was no more, but instead there stood a figure. Reika recognized it immediately, judging by the figure's similar tentacle design to Eight's. The figure appeared to be female, and was simply dressed in a tight bra and some black pants.

"An Octoling…" Eight muttered. The Octoling glared at the three standing before her with her icy green eyes.

"Inklings…" The Octoling muttered, her gaze still affixed upon the group.

"So, this is what those Octarians were after here for...a secret weapon, just like Marie said." Reika said aloud. She pointed the Inkhander at the opposing Octoling, but the girl just smirked.

"So, after everything I did for you, this is how you Inklings repay me? Lock me up, humiliate me, and then come back after you've changed your mind and just wanted to hurry up and kill me. How petty." The Octoling stated.

"Sorry, but I'm not the one who imprisoned you here. However, as far as I can see this turning out, I'll be the one to kill you. Can't let the Octarians take you, who knows what sort of things you can do."

"Then allow me to demonstrate, Inkling scum." The Octoling insulted. The insult, although minor, managed to tick Reika off slightly.

"Go ahead, eight-legged freak." She retaliated, but the Octoling didn't seem fazed by her insult, unlike Eight. Instead, the Octoling levitated something from within the fountain into her hand. A long sword, a weapon known for their extremely long and skinnier blades compared to other swords. She swung it around before stepping out into a stance, the sword's tip pointed down towards Reika, who was at the bottom of the steps.

"Shall we?"

"Go ahead, take your best shot." Reika answered. And with that, the Octoling squatted down and leapt into the air, long sword pointing downwards towards Reika. With the Inkhander in hand, Reika could only hope this wouldn't be the end...

* * *

**My original idea was to make this chapter much longer, but I felt like it was better to split it into two parts. Not sure why, it just seemed better that way. Not much else I want to say, so I guess be sure to look out for the next chapter, and feel free to leave a review.**


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